Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC Sells 6,069 Shares of Aflac Incorporated $AFL

Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC trimmed its position in shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 224,168 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 6,069 shares during the period. Aflac accounts for approximately 1.4% of Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC’s portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest holding. Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC’s holdings in Aflac were worth $25,040,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its stake in shares of Aflac by 1.1% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 5,307,681 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $590,161,000 after purchasing an additional 56,776 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in Aflac by 16.7% in the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,167,886 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $439,545,000 after buying an additional 594,971 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in Aflac in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $432,201,000. Guinness Asset Management LTD lifted its position in shares of Aflac by 19.4% during the second quarter. Guinness Asset Management LTD now owns 2,372,484 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $250,187,000 after acquiring an additional 385,546 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its holdings in Aflac by 4.3% during the 2nd quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,703,397 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $178,056,000 after purchasing an additional 70,244 shares in the last quarter. 67.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on AFL. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Aflac from $107.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, November 7th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of Aflac from $110.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Aflac from $100.00 to $101.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 5th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on Aflac from $108.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 9th. Finally, Mizuho began coverage on Aflac in a research note on Tuesday. They set an “underperform” rating and a $104.00 price target for the company. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $110.55.

Aflac Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AFL opened at $110.25 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $57.78 billion, a PE ratio of 14.39, a PEG ratio of 3.25 and a beta of 0.66. The company’s fifty day moving average is $109.87 and its 200 day moving average is $106.82. Aflac Incorporated has a 52 week low of $96.95 and a 52 week high of $115.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 0.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 27th. The financial services provider reported $1.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Aflac had a net margin of 23.55% and a return on equity of 14.97%. The business had revenue of $5.91 billion during the quarter. Research analysts anticipate that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Aflac Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 2nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 18th will be given a dividend of $0.61 per share. This represents a $2.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 18th. This is a positive change from Aflac’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. Aflac’s dividend payout ratio is 30.29%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Aflac news, EVP Steven Kent Beaver sold 5,492 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the executive vice president owned 38,368 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,202,447.04. The trade was a 12.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Frederic Jean Guy Simard sold 1,722 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $112.50, for a total value of $193,725.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 1,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $153,450. This trade represents a 55.80% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 31,766 shares of company stock valued at $3,549,706 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

Aflac Profile

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.