Insider Selling: Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) Director Sells 1,000 Shares of Stock

Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) Director Joseph L. Moskowitz sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $107.63, for a total value of $107,630.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 25,393 shares in the company, valued at $2,733,048.59. This represents a 3.79 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link.

Aflac Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of AFL stock opened at $106.35 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 0.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $105.21 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $107.73. Aflac Incorporated has a 12-month low of $79.31 and a 12-month high of $115.50. The firm has a market cap of $58.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 0.93.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last issued 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 anticipate that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on AFL shares. Barclays lowered their price objective on Aflac from $98.00 to $95.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their target price on Aflac from $107.00 to $104.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Aflac from $98.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Aflac from $104.00 to $102.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on Aflac in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $111.00 target price for the company. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $103.36.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Aflac

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Aflac by 75.2% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 776,131 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $88,533,000 after buying an additional 333,083 shares during the period. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Aflac by 79.7% in the third quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 27,354 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,058,000 after buying an additional 12,131 shares during the period. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Aflac in the third quarter worth about $979,000. Roxbury Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Aflac in the fourth quarter worth about $948,000. Finally, FMR LLC increased its holdings in shares of Aflac by 4.0% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,202,104 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $134,395,000 after buying an additional 45,745 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 67.44% of the company’s stock.

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.