Arizona State Retirement System Sells 2,152 Shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL)

Arizona State Retirement System lowered its holdings in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 1.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 152,625 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 2,152 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System’s holdings in Aflac were worth $15,788,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Aflac in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Aflac in the 3rd quarter valued at about $34,000. BankPlus Trust Department bought a new stake in shares of Aflac during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Raelipskie Partnership bought a new stake in shares of Aflac during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $38,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Aflac by 41.8% during the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 363 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 107 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 67.44% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Aflac

In other Aflac news, EVP Audrey B. Tillman sold 24,744 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.40, for a total value of $2,558,529.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 222,618 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,018,701.20. This represents a 10.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

Aflac Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AFL opened at $108.20 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.10 and a quick ratio of 0.08. Aflac Incorporated has a one year low of $79.31 and a one year high of $115.50. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $104.89 and a 200 day simple moving average of $107.67. The company has a market cap of $59.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.27, a PEG ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 0.93.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $1.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.63 by ($0.07). Aflac had a net margin of 28.76% and a return on equity of 16.20%. Research analysts predict that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on AFL. Piper Sandler cut their price target on shares of Aflac from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 7th. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on shares of Aflac in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They set a “market perform” rating and a $111.00 price target for the company. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Aflac from $104.00 to $102.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Aflac from $90.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Evercore ISI cut their price target on shares of Aflac from $104.00 to $102.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Aflac has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $103.36.

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.