Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC Increases Stock Position in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL)

Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 1.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,927 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 110 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC’s holdings in Aflac were worth $613,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Aflac in the 4th quarter worth about $163,409,000. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund increased its position in Aflac by 471.4% during the 3rd quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 600,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $67,080,000 after purchasing an additional 495,000 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its holdings in Aflac by 670.9% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 556,576 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $57,572,000 after buying an additional 484,378 shares during the period. World Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Aflac during the third quarter valued at approximately $42,290,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in Aflac by 75.2% during 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. 67.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Aflac Stock Down 1.6 %

AFL stock opened at $106.73 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $58.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.12, a PEG ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 0.93. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $105.15 and a 200-day simple moving average of $107.73. The company has a current ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 0.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. Aflac Incorporated has a twelve month low of $79.31 and a twelve month high of $115.50.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 28.76% and a return on equity of 16.20%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Audrey B. Tillman sold 24,744 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.40, for a total transaction of $2,558,529.60. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 222,618 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,018,701.20. This represents a 10.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Aflac from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on Aflac from $104.00 to $102.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Barclays lowered their target price on Aflac from $98.00 to $95.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 7th. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on Aflac in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. They set a “market perform” rating and a $111.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Aflac from $104.00 to $102.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $103.36.

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.