Lombard Odier Asset Management Switzerland SA Takes $750,000 Position in Aflac Incorporated $AFL

Lombard Odier Asset Management Switzerland SA purchased a new stake in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 6,832 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $750,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Waverly Advisors LLC raised its stake in Aflac by 11.4% in the 1st quarter. Waverly Advisors LLC now owns 21,614 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,371,000 after purchasing an additional 2,206 shares in the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its holdings in Aflac by 382.1% in the 1st quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 667,700 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $73,253,000 after purchasing an additional 529,200 shares during the period. Hilltop Holdings Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Aflac during the 1st quarter worth approximately $444,000. Compound Planning Inc. grew its position in shares of Aflac by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. Compound Planning Inc. now owns 13,743 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,508,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its position in shares of Aflac by 42.9% in the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 846,186 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $92,835,000 after buying an additional 254,010 shares in the last quarter. 67.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Aflac Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AFL opened at $129.58 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $119.03 and a 200-day moving average of $114.45. Aflac Incorporated has a 12 month low of $96.95 and a 12 month high of $129.62. The company has a current ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 0.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $65.95 billion, a PE ratio of 14.71, a PEG ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 0.61.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The financial services provider reported $1.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.80 by ($0.05). The firm had revenue of $4.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.20 billion. Aflac had a return on equity of 13.88% and a net margin of 25.60%.The business’s revenue was up 27.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.66 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Aflac Incorporated will post 7.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Aflac news, major shareholder Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 63,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.12, for a total transaction of $7,441,560.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 51,169,435 shares in the company, valued at $6,044,133,662.20. The trade was a 0.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 744,916 shares of company stock worth $87,118,632 in the last three months. 0.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on Aflac from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Mizuho set a $112.00 price objective on Aflac in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Aflac from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Wall Street Zen raised Aflac from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Finally, Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $130.00 target price (up from $125.00) on shares of Aflac in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $116.17.

Aflac Profile

Aflac Incorporated (American Family Life Assurance Company of Columbus) is a provider of supplemental insurance products designed to help policyholders manage out-of-pocket health care and living expenses. The company underwrites a range of individual and group policies that typically pay cash benefits directly to insureds when covered events occur, enabling greater financial flexibility for medical treatment, hospital stays, critical illness, and related costs. Aflac’s product mix includes supplemental health insurance, life insurance and other specialty coverages intended to complement primary medical plans.

Founded in the mid-20th century and headquartered in Columbus, Georgia, Aflac distributes its products through a combination of employer-sponsored programs, independent brokers and agents, and direct marketing.