Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) EVP Sells $2,558,529.60 in Stock

Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) EVP Audrey B. Tillman sold 24,744 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.40, for a total transaction of $2,558,529.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 222,618 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,018,701.20. This trade represents a 10.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website.

Aflac Trading Down 0.4 %

NYSE:AFL traded down $0.41 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $102.97. The company had a trading volume of 1,405,695 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,207,660. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.08 and a quick ratio of 0.08. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $107.85 and a 200 day moving average price of $104.07. The company has a market capitalization of $57.20 billion, a PE ratio of 15.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 0.97. Aflac Incorporated has a 52 week low of $75.07 and a 52 week high of $115.50.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.69 by $0.47. Aflac had a net margin of 22.02% and a return on equity of 16.34%. The company had revenue of $2.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.30 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.84 earnings per share. Aflac’s quarterly revenue was down 40.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Aflac Incorporated will post 7.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Aflac Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 19th will be paid a $0.58 dividend. This represents a $2.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.25%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 19th. This is a boost from Aflac’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Aflac’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.94%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Aflac

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Arkadios Wealth Advisors purchased a new stake in shares of Aflac in the 2nd quarter worth about $247,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. bought a new stake in Aflac during the second quarter worth about $242,000. Rothschild Investment LLC bought a new stake in Aflac during the second quarter worth about $83,000. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC grew its holdings in Aflac by 5.7% in the second quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 302,278 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,996,000 after purchasing an additional 16,431 shares during the period. Finally, Banque Cantonale Vaudoise purchased a new position in shares of Aflac during the second quarter valued at approximately $834,000. 67.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Aflac from $115.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Aflac to $107.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Piper Sandler raised their price target on Aflac from $114.00 to $122.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Barclays started coverage on Aflac in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. They issued an “underweight” rating and a $96.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Truist Financial raised their price objective on Aflac from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $98.73.

About Aflac

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.