Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) Shares Sold by HMS Capital Management LLC

HMS Capital Management LLC reduced its position in shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 4.7% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 2,273 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 112 shares during the quarter. HMS Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Aflac were worth $235,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its position in Aflac by 6.4% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 4,694,511 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $524,846,000 after purchasing an additional 281,148 shares during the last quarter. Guinness Asset Management LTD raised its stake in shares of Aflac by 5.2% in the 4th quarter. Guinness Asset Management LTD now owns 2,395,045 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $247,682,000 after acquiring an additional 118,720 shares during the period. National Pension Service increased its stake in Aflac by 8.9% during the 3rd quarter. National Pension Service now owns 1,662,514 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $185,869,000 after buying an additional 136,238 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. increased its stake in Aflac by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,584,552 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $177,153,000 after buying an additional 10,487 shares during the period. Finally, Barclays PLC increased its stake in Aflac by 10.1% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 1,391,127 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $155,529,000 after buying an additional 127,911 shares during the period. 67.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Audrey B. Tillman sold 24,744 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.40, for a total value of $2,558,529.60. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 222,618 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,018,701.20. This trade represents a 10.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

Aflac Price Performance

Aflac stock opened at $102.98 on Thursday. Aflac Incorporated has a 12-month low of $77.01 and a 12-month high of $115.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $57.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.73, a P/E/G ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 0.99. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $104.41 and its two-hundred day moving average is $107.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.10 and a quick ratio of 0.08.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $1.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.63 by ($0.07). Aflac had a return on equity of 16.20% and a net margin of 28.76%. Equities analysts predict that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Aflac Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 19th will be given a $0.58 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 19th. This is a boost from Aflac’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. This represents a $2.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.25%. Aflac’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 20.83%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently weighed in on AFL. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Aflac from $98.00 to $95.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 7th. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on shares of Aflac in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They set a “market perform” rating and a $111.00 price target for the company. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on shares of Aflac from $104.00 to $102.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on shares of Aflac from $107.00 to $104.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Aflac from $103.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Aflac presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $103.00.

About Aflac

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.