Aflac Incorporated $AFL Stock Position Raised by Dimensional Fund Advisors LP

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 7.6% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 4,414,180 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 310,220 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned 0.84% of Aflac worth $493,047,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cresset Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Aflac by 1.1% in the third quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC now owns 79,368 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $8,865,000 after purchasing an additional 841 shares during the period. Picton Mahoney Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of Aflac during the 3rd quarter worth $870,000. Level Four Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in Aflac by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Level Four Advisory Services LLC now owns 65,135 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $7,276,000 after buying an additional 1,175 shares during the last quarter. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC bought a new position in Aflac in the 3rd quarter worth $377,000. Finally, Becker Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in Aflac by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. Becker Capital Management Inc. now owns 9,035 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,009,000 after acquiring an additional 340 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 67.44% of the company’s stock.

Aflac Price Performance

Aflac stock opened at $112.45 on Thursday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $111.66 and a 200 day simple moving average of $110.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.11 and a quick ratio of 0.11. The company has a market capitalization of $58.07 billion, a PE ratio of 16.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.68 and a beta of 0.66. Aflac Incorporated has a one year low of $96.95 and a one year high of $119.32.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $1.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.69 by ($0.12). Aflac had a net margin of 21.24% and a return on equity of 14.35%. The firm had revenue of $4.28 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.45 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.57 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Aflac

In other news, EVP Steven Kent Beaver sold 7,387 shares of Aflac stock in a transaction on Friday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.58, for a total value of $839,015.46. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 40,526 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,602,943.08. This trade represents a 15.42% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders have sold 16,331 shares of company stock worth $1,817,720 over the last quarter. 0.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AFL has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Mizuho set a $107.00 price objective on Aflac in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Barclays set a $101.00 price target on Aflac and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Aflac from $101.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b+)” rating on shares of Aflac in a research note on Monday, December 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $120.00 target price on shares of Aflac in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $111.73.

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.