Aflac Incorporated $AFL Shares Sold by Estabrook Capital Management

Estabrook Capital Management decreased its stake in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 1.8% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 63,133 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,150 shares during the quarter. Aflac makes up 1.0% of Estabrook Capital Management’s holdings, making the stock its 29th largest position. Estabrook Capital Management’s holdings in Aflac were worth $6,658,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of AFL. New York State Common Retirement Fund boosted its position in Aflac by 79.9% in the 2nd quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 625,892 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $66,007,000 after purchasing an additional 277,957 shares in the last quarter. Williamson Legacy Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Aflac by 21.1% in the 2nd quarter. Williamson Legacy Group LLC now owns 5,738 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $605,000 after purchasing an additional 1,001 shares during the period. Mackenzie Financial Corp boosted its holdings in Aflac by 4.2% during the second quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 77,879 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $8,213,000 after buying an additional 3,115 shares in the last quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ grew its position in Aflac by 4.1% during the second quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ now owns 114,782 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $12,105,000 after buying an additional 4,517 shares during the period. Finally, Virtus Investment Advisers LLC purchased a new position in Aflac in the second quarter valued at $1,354,000. 67.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Aflac news, EVP Audrey B. Tillman sold 15,862 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $112.00, for a total value of $1,776,544.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 230,688 shares in the company, valued at $25,837,056. This represents a 6.43% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Frederic Jean Guy Simard sold 1,722 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 6th. The stock was 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 directly owned 1,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $153,450. This trade represents a 55.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 22,822 shares of company stock worth $2,571,002. 0.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Aflac Price Performance

Aflac stock opened at $110.31 on Friday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $110.31 and a 200-day simple moving average of $106.27. The firm has a market capitalization of $57.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.01, a PEG ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 0.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. Aflac Incorporated has a 52-week low of $96.95 and a 52-week high of $115.83.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 27th. The financial services provider reported $1.07 earnings per share for the quarter. Aflac had a net margin of 15.32% and a return on equity of 15.08%. The firm had revenue of $5.91 billion for the quarter. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Aflac declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, August 12th that permits the company to repurchase 100,000,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Aflac Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared 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 a boost from Aflac’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. This represents a $2.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 18th. Aflac’s payout ratio is 31.85%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Aflac from $114.00 to $111.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. Evercore ISI increased their price target on Aflac from $110.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 7th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Aflac from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Aflac in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Barclays reissued an “underweight” rating and issued a $104.00 price target (up previously from $102.00) on shares of Aflac in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Aflac presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $111.00.

Aflac 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.