StockNews.com Downgrades Aflac (NYSE:AFL) to Sell

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) was downgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report released on Monday.

Other research analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on shares of Aflac from $107.00 to $104.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Barclays increased their price objective on Aflac from $95.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Aflac from $94.00 to $96.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Aflac from $105.00 to $100.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Aflac from $104.00 to $102.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $104.07.

Aflac Stock Performance

Shares of AFL stock opened at $105.90 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 0.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The business has a 50 day moving average of $107.37 and a two-hundred day moving average of $106.76. The company has a market cap of $57.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.03, a PEG ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 0.84. Aflac has a 52 week low of $84.30 and a 52 week high of $115.50.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.67 by ($0.01). Aflac had a net margin of 28.76% and a return on equity of 16.20%. The company had revenue of $3.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.53 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.66 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 37.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Aflac will post 6.88 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Aflac

In related news, Director Joseph L. Moskowitz sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $107.63, for a total value of $107,630.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 25,393 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,733,048.59. This represents a 3.79 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Charles D. Lake II sold 29,802 shares of Aflac stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.29, for a total transaction of $3,197,456.58. Following the transaction, the director now owns 49,962 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,360,422.98. The trade was a 37.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Aflac

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in Aflac by 75.2% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 776,131 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $88,533,000 after purchasing an additional 333,083 shares during the last quarter. Roxbury Financial LLC bought a new stake in Aflac in the fourth quarter worth approximately $948,000. Willis Investment Counsel increased its stake in shares of Aflac by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Willis Investment Counsel now owns 273,466 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $28,287,000 after purchasing an additional 3,357 shares during the last quarter. Board of the Pension Protection Fund bought a new position in shares of Aflac during the 4th quarter valued at $1,014,000. Finally, Czech National Bank lifted its stake in shares of Aflac by 5.6% in the 4th quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 108,405 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $11,213,000 after purchasing an additional 5,731 shares during the last quarter. 67.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Aflac

Aflac Incorporated, through its subsidiaries, provides supplemental health and life insurance products. The company operates through Aflac Japan and Aflac U.S. segments. The Aflac Japan segment offers cancer, medical, nursing care, work leave, GIFT, and whole and term life insurance products, as well as WAYS and child endowment plans under saving type insurance products in Japan.