Focused Alpha LLC Invests $531,000 in Aflac Incorporated $AFL

Focused Alpha LLC purchased a new position in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 4,528 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $531,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Aflac in the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Groupe la Francaise bought a new stake in shares of Aflac during the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in shares of Aflac in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Nalls Sherbakoff Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Aflac in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Evergreen Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Aflac in the first quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Institutional investors own 67.44% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Aflac

In other Aflac news, major shareholder Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 13,000 shares of Aflac stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.09, for a total value of $1,574,170.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 50,872,690 shares in the company, valued at $6,160,174,032.10. The trade was a 0.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Joseph L. Moskowitz sold 600 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.10, for a total transaction of $74,460.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 32,710 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,059,311. The trade was a 1.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 541,333 shares of company stock worth $63,345,006. 0.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Aflac Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:AFL opened at $120.95 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $60.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 0.60. Aflac Incorporated has a 52 week low of $104.66 and a 52 week high of $130.22. The company has a quick ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 0.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $121.47 and a 200 day moving average of $115.95.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.75 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.76 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $4.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.11 billion. Aflac had a return on equity of 13.27% and a net margin of 26.91%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.78 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Aflac Incorporated will post 7.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Aflac Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 19th will be paid a dividend of $0.61 per share. This represents a $2.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 19th. Aflac’s dividend payout ratio is 26.15%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on AFL shares. Barclays restated an “underweight” rating and set a $99.00 price objective (up from $98.00) on shares of Aflac in a report on Friday, August 7th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Aflac from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Aflac from $111.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating and issued a $108.00 price objective (up from $100.00) on shares of Aflac in a report on Friday, July 10th. Finally, Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $138.00 price objective (up from $130.00) on shares of Aflac in a research note on Monday, August 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $117.58.

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.