Maj Invest Holding A S Lowers Stock Holdings in Aflac Incorporated $AFL

Maj Invest Holding A S trimmed its holdings in shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 2.9% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 559,634 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 16,813 shares during the period. Aflac makes up approximately 2.9% of Maj Invest Holding A S’s portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest holding. Maj Invest Holding A S’s holdings in Aflac were worth $61,711,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AFL. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Aflac by 13.4% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 57,142,072 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,301,056,000 after purchasing an additional 6,759,169 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Aflac by 1,184.5% during the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,264,090 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $141,199,000 after acquiring an additional 1,165,676 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in shares of Aflac by 132.4% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,227,200 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $137,078,000 after acquiring an additional 699,080 shares in the last quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV increased its position in shares of Aflac by 180.5% during the third quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 252,457 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $27,320,000 after acquiring an additional 565,884 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Two Sigma Investments LP increased its position in shares of Aflac by 402.9% during the third quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 653,853 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $73,035,000 after acquiring an additional 523,845 shares in the last quarter. 67.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Thomas J. Kenny sold 1,740 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.57, for a total transaction of $202,831.80. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 13,219 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,540,938.83. The trade was a 11.63% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Miwako Hosoda sold 243 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.50, for a total transaction of $27,823.50. Following the sale, the director directly owned 7,743 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $886,573.50. The trade was a 3.04% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 674,615 shares of company stock worth $75,311,551. Company insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Aflac Trading Up 1.5%

NYSE:AFL opened at $118.58 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 0.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. Aflac Incorporated has a 12 month low of $96.95 and a 12 month high of $119.32. The company has a market cap of $60.35 billion, a PE ratio of 13.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $111.89 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $111.37.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The financial services provider reported $1.75 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.80 by ($0.05). Aflac had a return on equity of 13.88% and a net margin of 25.60%.The company had revenue of $4.24 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.20 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.66 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 27.9% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Aflac Incorporated will post 7.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Aflac Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 20th will be given a dividend of $0.61 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 20th. This represents a $2.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Aflac’s payout ratio is presently 27.70%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Aflac from $116.00 to $114.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on shares of Aflac from $113.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Aflac from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a research report on Friday. Barclays set a $99.00 price target on shares of Aflac and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Aflac from $116.00 to $111.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $111.36.

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.