Marco Investment Management LLC Sells 2,262 Shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL)

Marco Investment Management LLC cut its stake in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 2.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 93,766 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 2,262 shares during the period. Marco Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Aflac were worth $9,699,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Aflac during the 4th quarter worth about $163,409,000. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund grew its holdings in Aflac by 471.4% during the 3rd quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 600,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $67,080,000 after acquiring an additional 495,000 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its holdings in Aflac by 670.9% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 556,576 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $57,572,000 after acquiring an additional 484,378 shares in the last quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in Aflac during the 3rd quarter worth about $42,290,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in Aflac by 75.2% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 776,131 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $88,533,000 after acquiring an additional 333,083 shares in the last quarter. 67.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Aflac news, EVP Audrey B. Tillman sold 24,744 shares of the firm’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 transaction of $2,558,529.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 222,618 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,018,701.20. This trade represents a 10.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Aflac Stock Performance

AFL opened at $107.89 on Friday. Aflac Incorporated has a 12-month low of $79.31 and a 12-month high of $115.50. The company has a current ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 0.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $58.97 billion, a PE ratio of 11.24, a P/E/G ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 0.93. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $104.98 and a two-hundred day moving average of $107.67.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AFL has been the subject of several analyst reports. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Aflac from $98.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. StockNews.com raised shares of Aflac from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Aflac from $104.00 to $102.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Aflac from $90.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on shares of Aflac from $107.00 to $104.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Aflac has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target 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.