Aflac Incorporated $AFL Shares Sold by Geode Capital Management LLC

Geode Capital Management LLC lessened its holdings in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 16.3% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,764,545 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 2,102,963 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Aflac were worth $1,129,499,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Mid American Wealth Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Aflac in the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Chilton Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Aflac during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC grew its stake in Aflac by 1,526.7% in the 2nd quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 244 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 229 shares during the period. AlphaCore Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Aflac in the 1st quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Hilltop National Bank acquired a new position in Aflac during the second quarter worth $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.44% of the company’s stock.

Aflac Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of Aflac stock opened at $114.96 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.11 and a quick ratio of 0.11. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $109.57 and its 200-day simple moving average is $105.91. The stock has a market cap of $60.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.07, a P/E/G ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.83. Aflac Incorporated has a 1-year low of $96.95 and a 1-year high of $115.45.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 27th. The financial services provider reported $1.07 EPS for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $5.91 billion for the quarter. Aflac had a return on equity of 15.08% and a net margin of 15.32%. Analysts predict that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Aflac Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 2nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 18th will be issued a $0.61 dividend. This is an increase from Aflac’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. This represents a $2.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 18th. Aflac’s payout ratio is currently 30.29%.

Aflac announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, August 12th that allows the company to buyback 100,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on shares of Aflac from $110.00 to $111.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 7th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Aflac in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Aflac from $107.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, November 7th. Barclays restated an “underweight” rating and issued a $104.00 target price (up previously from $102.00) on shares of Aflac in a research report on Wednesday, November 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Aflac from $108.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 18th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $110.50.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Frederic Jean Guy Simard sold 1,722 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $112.50, for a total value of $193,725.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 1,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $153,450. This represents a 55.80% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Joseph L. Moskowitz sold 1,000 shares of Aflac stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.00, for a total transaction of $114,000.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 23,615 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,692,110. The trade was a 4.06% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.