Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV Cuts Stock Holdings in Aflac Incorporated $AFL

Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV decreased its position in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 35.2% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 19,578 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 10,627 shares during the period. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV’s holdings in Aflac were worth $2,187,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its holdings in Aflac by 188.5% during the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 225 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 147 shares during the period. Mid American Wealth Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Aflac during the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. Chilton Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Aflac during the 2nd quarter worth $26,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Aflac by 1,526.7% in the 2nd quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 244 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 229 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hilltop National Bank bought a new position in Aflac during the second quarter valued at about $32,000. Institutional investors own 67.44% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Frederic Jean Guy Simard sold 1,722 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $112.50, for a total transaction of $193,725.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 1,364 shares in the company, valued at $153,450. The trade was a 55.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Steven Kent Beaver sold 5,492 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 owned 38,368 shares in the company, valued at $4,202,447.04. This represents a 12.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 31,766 shares of company stock worth $3,549,706 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Barclays set a $101.00 price objective on shares of Aflac and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Mizuho began coverage on Aflac in a report on Tuesday, December 16th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $104.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Aflac from $107.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 7th. Morgan Stanley set a $120.00 price target on Aflac in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Aflac from $101.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, January 5th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $110.67.

Aflac Trading Down 0.0%

Shares of Aflac stock opened at $109.57 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $110.46 and its 200-day moving average price is $107.81. The company has a current ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 0.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. Aflac Incorporated has a 12-month low of $96.95 and a 12-month high of $115.83. The company has a market cap of $57.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.30, a PEG ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 0.67.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.49 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.77 by $0.72. Aflac had a net margin of 23.55% and a return on equity of 14.97%. The business had revenue of $4.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.36 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.16 EPS. Aflac’s revenue was up 59.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Aflac Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 2nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 18th will be given a $0.61 dividend. This represents a $2.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. This is a boost from Aflac’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 18th. Aflac’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 31.85%.

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.