UPDATE: Sterne Agee Upgrades AFLAC to Buy Following 1Q13 Conference Call

In a report published Friday, Sterne Agee analyst John M. Nadel upgraded the rating on AFLAC AFL from Neutral to Buy, and raised the price target from $63.00 to $65.00. In the report, Nadel noted, “We're buyers again of AFL. Off the 1Q13 conference call we see incremental positives of: 1) hedging profit repatriation from the Japan branch, which provides better visibility on capital management; and 2) potential upside to Japan margins as first sector sales fall. Ideally, we'd like to see AFL introduce further hedging to ‘lock in' higher capital ratios which have benefited from a weaker Yen and lower rates. That would be the trifecta in our view.” AFLAC closed on Thursday at $52.57.