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Aflac (AFL) Stock Sinks As Market Gains: What You Should Know
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In the latest trading session, Aflac (AFL - Free Report) closed at $59.69, marking a -0.2% move from the previous day. This change lagged the S&P 500's daily gain of 1.84%. Meanwhile, the Dow gained 1.33%, and the Nasdaq, a tech-heavy index, added 0.67%.
Heading into today, shares of the insurer had gained 0.22% over the past month, lagging the Finance sector's gain of 0.54% and outpacing the S&P 500's loss of 0.5% in that time.
Wall Street will be looking for positivity from Aflac as it approaches its next earnings report date. On that day, Aflac is projected to report earnings of $1.31 per share, which would represent a year-over-year decline of 17.61%. Meanwhile, our latest consensus estimate is calling for revenue of $4.88 billion, down 12.31% from the prior-year quarter.
For the full year, our Zacks Consensus Estimates are projecting earnings of $5.27 per share and revenue of $19.74 billion, which would represent changes of -11.28% and -10.68%, respectively, from the prior year.
Investors should also note any recent changes to analyst estimates for Aflac. Recent revisions tend to reflect the latest near-term business trends. As such, positive estimate revisions reflect analyst optimism about the company's business and profitability.
Based on our research, we believe these estimate revisions are directly related to near-team stock moves. Investors can capitalize on this by using the Zacks Rank. This model considers these estimate changes and provides a simple, actionable rating system.
The Zacks Rank system, which ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), has an impressive outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks generating an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Within the past 30 days, our consensus EPS projection remained stagnant. Aflac currently has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).
In terms of valuation, Aflac is currently trading at a Forward P/E ratio of 11.35. This valuation marks a discount compared to its industry's average Forward P/E of 15.21.
Also, we should mention that AFL has a PEG ratio of 2.27. This metric is used similarly to the famous P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also takes into account the stock's expected earnings growth rate. The Insurance - Accident and Health was holding an average PEG ratio of 1.44 at yesterday's closing price.
The Insurance - Accident and Health industry is part of the Finance sector. This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 224, putting it in the bottom 12% of all 250+ industries.
The Zacks Industry Rank includes is listed in order from best to worst in terms of the average Zacks Rank of the individual companies within each of these sectors. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.
To follow AFL in the coming trading sessions, be sure to utilize Zacks.com.
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Aflac (AFL) Stock Sinks As Market Gains: What You Should Know
In the latest trading session, Aflac (AFL - Free Report) closed at $59.69, marking a -0.2% move from the previous day. This change lagged the S&P 500's daily gain of 1.84%. Meanwhile, the Dow gained 1.33%, and the Nasdaq, a tech-heavy index, added 0.67%.
Heading into today, shares of the insurer had gained 0.22% over the past month, lagging the Finance sector's gain of 0.54% and outpacing the S&P 500's loss of 0.5% in that time.
Wall Street will be looking for positivity from Aflac as it approaches its next earnings report date. On that day, Aflac is projected to report earnings of $1.31 per share, which would represent a year-over-year decline of 17.61%. Meanwhile, our latest consensus estimate is calling for revenue of $4.88 billion, down 12.31% from the prior-year quarter.
For the full year, our Zacks Consensus Estimates are projecting earnings of $5.27 per share and revenue of $19.74 billion, which would represent changes of -11.28% and -10.68%, respectively, from the prior year.
Investors should also note any recent changes to analyst estimates for Aflac. Recent revisions tend to reflect the latest near-term business trends. As such, positive estimate revisions reflect analyst optimism about the company's business and profitability.
Based on our research, we believe these estimate revisions are directly related to near-team stock moves. Investors can capitalize on this by using the Zacks Rank. This model considers these estimate changes and provides a simple, actionable rating system.
The Zacks Rank system, which ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), has an impressive outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks generating an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Within the past 30 days, our consensus EPS projection remained stagnant. Aflac currently has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).
In terms of valuation, Aflac is currently trading at a Forward P/E ratio of 11.35. This valuation marks a discount compared to its industry's average Forward P/E of 15.21.
Also, we should mention that AFL has a PEG ratio of 2.27. This metric is used similarly to the famous P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also takes into account the stock's expected earnings growth rate. The Insurance - Accident and Health was holding an average PEG ratio of 1.44 at yesterday's closing price.
The Insurance - Accident and Health industry is part of the Finance sector. This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 224, putting it in the bottom 12% of all 250+ industries.
The Zacks Industry Rank includes is listed in order from best to worst in terms of the average Zacks Rank of the individual companies within each of these sectors. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.
To follow AFL in the coming trading sessions, be sure to utilize Zacks.com.