LSV Asset Management Cuts Position in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL)

LSV Asset Management trimmed its holdings in shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 33.2% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,390,323 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 691,377 shares during the quarter. LSV Asset Management’s holdings in Aflac were worth $154,590,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of AFL. Northern Trust Corp increased its position in shares of Aflac by 22.9% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 7,296,014 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $754,700,000 after purchasing an additional 1,357,753 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its position in Aflac by 11.9% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 5,250,905 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $543,154,000 after buying an additional 556,394 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in Aflac by 12,313.9% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,504,067 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $167,237,000 after buying an additional 1,491,951 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC raised its position in Aflac by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 1,427,628 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $147,673,000 after acquiring an additional 36,501 shares during the period. Finally, Nuveen Asset Management LLC raised its position in Aflac by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 1,366,432 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $141,344,000 after acquiring an additional 26,131 shares during the period. 67.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Aflac Stock Down 1.3%

Shares of NYSE:AFL opened at $98.10 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $102.58 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $105.06. The company has a market cap of $53.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.33, a PEG ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.09 and a quick ratio of 0.09. Aflac Incorporated has a one year low of $95.97 and a one year high of $115.50.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.67 by ($0.01). Aflac had a return on equity of 15.55% and a net margin of 21.27%. The business had revenue of $3.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.53 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.66 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 37.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AFL has been the subject of a number of research reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Aflac from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Raymond James Financial reduced their price objective on Aflac from $115.00 to $110.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Aflac from $103.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Aflac from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on Aflac from $104.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Aflac presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $108.15.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Joseph L. Moskowitz sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.79, for a total value of $106,790.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 26,096 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,786,791.84. This represents a 3.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Arthur Reginald Collins sold 2,750 shares of Aflac stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.70, for a total transaction of $290,675.00. Following the sale, the director owned 6,728 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $711,149.60. The trade was a 29.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 40,750 shares of company stock worth $4,304,295 in the last ninety days. 0.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Aflac Company Profile

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.