Strs Ohio Has $16.11 Million Stock Position in Aflac Incorporated $AFL

Strs Ohio lifted its stake in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 11.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 146,829 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 14,603 shares during the period. Strs Ohio’s holdings in Aflac were worth $16,109,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Stephens Inc. AR grew its position in Aflac by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Stephens Inc. AR now owns 21,945 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,420,000 after acquiring an additional 91 shares during the period. Root Financial Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Aflac by 4.5% in the 4th quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 2,119 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $234,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co increased its position in shares of Aflac by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 19,088 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,105,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in Aflac by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 7,702 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $902,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Confluence Wealth Services Inc. boosted its position in Aflac by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. now owns 11,923 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,315,000 after buying an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 67.44% of the company’s stock.

Aflac Stock Performance

Aflac stock opened at $120.73 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $61.45 billion, a PE ratio of 13.70, a PEG ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a current ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 0.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. Aflac Incorporated has a 1 year low of $96.95 and a 1 year high of $120.88. The company’s 50-day moving average is $116.30 and its two-hundred day moving average is $112.89.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The financial services provider reported $1.75 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.80 by ($0.05). Aflac had a return on equity of 13.88% and a net margin of 25.60%.The business had revenue of $4.24 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.20 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.66 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 27.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Aflac Incorporated will post 7.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Aflac Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 20th were given a $0.61 dividend. This represents a $2.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 20th. Aflac’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 27.70%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Joseph L. Moskowitz sold 12,370 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.54, for a total value of $1,441,599.80. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 33,310 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,881,947.40. This represents a 27.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, major shareholder Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 27,845 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.71, for a total value of $3,249,789.95. Following the transaction, the insider owned 50,898,490 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,940,362,767.90. This trade represents a 0.05% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 1,042,771 shares of company stock valued at $120,575,104. 0.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AFL has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Aflac from $116.00 to $111.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. UBS Group cut their price objective on Aflac from $116.00 to $114.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Mizuho set a $104.00 target price on Aflac in a report on Monday, May 4th. Weiss Ratings raised Aflac from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a report on Monday, June 15th. Finally, Barclays set a $99.00 price target on shares of Aflac and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $112.27.

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.