Pittenger & Anderson Inc. Acquires 1,695 Shares of Aflac Incorporated $AFL

Pittenger & Anderson Inc. lifted its holdings in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 2.1% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 81,244 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,695 shares during the period. Pittenger & Anderson Inc.’s holdings in Aflac were worth $8,568,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AFL. AlphaCore Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Aflac in the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,000. Hilltop National Bank bought a new position in shares of Aflac in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Aflac by 121.9% in the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 304 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares during the period. Groupe la Francaise bought a new position in shares of Aflac in the 1st quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Garde Capital Inc. bought a new position in shares of Aflac in the 1st quarter worth approximately $36,000. Institutional investors own 67.44% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Aflac

In related news, Director Joseph L. Moskowitz sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.57, for a total value of $102,570.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 25,105 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,575,019.85. This trade represents a 3.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Aflac Trading Up 1.0%

Aflac stock opened at $108.77 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $58.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.66, a PEG ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.11 and a quick ratio of 0.11. Aflac Incorporated has a 1 year low of $96.95 and a 1 year high of $115.43. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $108.45 and its 200-day moving average price is $105.41.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 27th. The financial services provider reported $1.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $5.91 billion for the quarter. Aflac had a net margin of 15.32% and a return on equity of 15.08%. On average, equities analysts predict that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Aflac declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, August 12th that allows the company to repurchase 100,000,000 shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Aflac Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 20th were given a dividend of $0.58 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 20th. This represents a $2.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Aflac’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 52.61%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AFL has been the subject of several analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Aflac from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Barclays reissued an “underweight” rating and issued a $102.00 target price (up from $100.00) on shares of Aflac in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Aflac from $105.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, August 11th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Aflac from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Aflac in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Aflac has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $109.45.

Aflac Profile

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.