Welch & Forbes LLC Sells 6,667 Shares of Aflac Incorporated $AFL

Welch & Forbes LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 2.0% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 326,635 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 6,667 shares during the quarter. Welch & Forbes LLC owned about 0.06% of Aflac worth $36,485,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in AFL. True Wealth Design LLC boosted its stake 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 buying an additional 147 shares during the period. Mid American Wealth Advisory Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Aflac in the 2nd quarter worth about $26,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Aflac by 1,526.7% during the 2nd quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 244 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 229 shares during the period. Chilton Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Aflac during the 2nd quarter valued at about $26,000. Finally, Hilltop National Bank bought a new position in Aflac during the 2nd quarter valued at about $32,000. 67.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Aflac Stock Performance

Shares of AFL stock opened at $110.94 on Friday. 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. The stock has a market cap of $58.14 billion, a PE ratio of 14.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.26 and a beta of 0.67. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $109.74 and a 200-day simple moving average of $108.20.

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

Aflac Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 2nd. Shareholders 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 an increase from Aflac’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 18th. Aflac’s payout ratio is currently 30.29%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AFL has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Barclays set a $101.00 target price on Aflac and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b+)” rating on shares of Aflac in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of Aflac from $108.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Aflac from $101.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Finally, Piper Sandler set a $125.00 price objective on Aflac and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 7th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $110.64.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Joseph L. Moskowitz sold 786 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.75, for a total transaction of $89,407.50. Following the sale, the director directly owned 24,829 shares in the company, valued at $2,824,298.75. This trade represents a 3.07% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Frederic Jean Guy Simard sold 1,722 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $112.50, for a total value of $193,725.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 1,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $153,450. The trade was a 55.80% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 31,766 shares of company stock valued at $3,549,706. Insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

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.