Advisors Asset Management Inc. Lowers Holdings in Aflac Incorporated $AFL

Advisors Asset Management Inc. reduced its position in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 27.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 37,229 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 14,197 shares during the quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Aflac were worth $4,158,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. True Wealth Design LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Aflac by 188.5% in the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 225 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 147 shares in the last quarter. Mid American Wealth Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new position in Aflac during the second quarter worth about $26,000. Chilton Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Aflac in the second quarter valued at about $26,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC lifted its position in Aflac by 1,526.7% in the second quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 244 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 229 shares during the period. Finally, Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Aflac in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.44% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Steven Kent Beaver sold 5,492 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $109.53, for a total value of $601,538.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 38,368 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,202,447.04. The trade was a 12.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Joseph L. Moskowitz sold 786 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.75, for a total value of $89,407.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 24,829 shares in the company, valued at $2,824,298.75. This represents a 3.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 25,592 shares of company stock worth $2,844,656 over the last ninety days. 0.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Aflac from $101.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Aflac from $107.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, November 7th. Mizuho set a $107.00 target price on Aflac in a report on Monday. Morgan Stanley set a $120.00 target price on shares of Aflac in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Finally, TD Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Aflac in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Aflac currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $110.91.

Aflac Trading Down 0.9%

Shares of AFL stock opened at $114.82 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $60.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.69, a P/E/G ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a quick ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 0.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. Aflac Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $96.95 and a fifty-two week high of $119.32. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $110.72 and a 200-day simple moving average of $109.09.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $1.57 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.69 by ($0.12). Aflac had a return on equity of 14.35% and a net margin of 21.24%.The business had revenue of $4.87 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.45 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.57 earnings per share. Aflac’s quarterly revenue was down 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Aflac

Aflac Incorporated (American Family Life Assurance Company of Columbus) is a provider of supplemental insurance products designed to help policyholders manage out-of-pocket health care and living expenses. The company underwrites a range of individual and group policies that typically pay cash benefits directly to insureds when covered events occur, enabling greater financial flexibility for medical treatment, hospital stays, critical illness, and related costs. Aflac’s product mix includes supplemental health insurance, life insurance and other specialty coverages intended to complement primary medical plans.

Founded in the mid-20th century and headquartered in Columbus, Georgia, Aflac distributes its products through a combination of employer-sponsored programs, independent brokers and agents, and direct marketing.