Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) Shares Sold by Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A.

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. cut its holdings in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL - Free Report) by 40.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 104,314 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 70,119 shares during the quarter. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A.'s holdings in Aflac were worth $10,790,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Aflac in the fourth quarter valued at about $349,699,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Aflac during the 4th quarter worth approximately $163,409,000. Amundi boosted its stake in Aflac by 81.1% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 2,753,513 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $285,181,000 after acquiring an additional 1,232,683 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Aflac by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 51,340,298 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $5,310,640,000 after purchasing an additional 653,275 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its stake 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 buying an additional 484,378 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.44% of the company's stock.

Aflac Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE:AFL traded down $0.82 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $107.78. The stock had a trading volume of 396,614 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,108,507. Aflac Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $80.59 and a fifty-two week high of $115.50. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $107.30 and a 200-day moving average price of $107.05. The stock has a market cap of $58.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.23, a PEG ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a quick ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 0.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

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

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Joseph L. Moskowitz sold 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.63, for a total value of $107,630.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 25,393 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,733,048.59. The trade was a 3.79 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Charles D. Lake II sold 29,802 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.29, for a total value of $3,197,456.58. Following the transaction, the director now owns 49,962 shares in the company, valued at $5,360,422.98. This trade represents a 37.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.90% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Aflac from $109.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Barclays decreased their price objective on Aflac from $98.00 to $95.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Aflac from $94.00 to $96.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Piper Sandler increased their target price on shares of Aflac from $118.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Aflac from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Two equities research 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's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $103.93.

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.