Aflac Incorporated $AFL Shares Sold by California State Teachers Retirement System

California State Teachers Retirement System trimmed its position in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL - Free Report) by 4.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 772,361 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 32,734 shares during the period. California State Teachers Retirement System owned about 0.15% of Aflac worth $84,736,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. DNB Asset Management AS lifted its holdings in shares of Aflac by 51.3% during the 4th quarter. DNB Asset Management AS now owns 168,003 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $18,526,000 after acquiring an additional 56,975 shares during the period. BIP Wealth LLC grew its holdings in Aflac by 348.3% in the fourth quarter. BIP Wealth LLC now owns 55,723 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $6,145,000 after purchasing an additional 43,293 shares during the period. Employees Retirement System of Texas purchased a new stake in Aflac in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $3,743,000. Atlas Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Aflac during the first quarter worth approximately $1,802,000. Finally, Dorato Capital Management acquired a new position in Aflac during the fourth quarter worth approximately $20,865,000. 67.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Aflac Trading Down 0.6%

NYSE:AFL opened at $128.77 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 0.11 and a current ratio of 0.11. Aflac Incorporated has a one year low of $96.95 and a one year high of $130.22. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $119.26 and its 200 day simple moving average is $114.58. The stock has a market cap of $65.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.61.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The financial services provider reported $1.75 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.80 by ($0.05). Aflac had a net margin of 25.60% and a return on equity of 13.88%. The business had revenue of $4.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.20 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.66 EPS. Aflac's revenue for the quarter was up 27.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Aflac Incorporated will post 7.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on AFL shares. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Aflac from a "buy (b+)" rating to a "buy (a-)" rating in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Wall Street Zen raised Aflac from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th. UBS Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $124.00 target price (up from $114.00) on shares of Aflac in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Aflac from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Finally, Piper Sandler restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $130.00 price target (up from $125.00) on shares of Aflac in a report on Tuesday, May 26th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $116.17.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, major shareholder Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 27,845 shares of Aflac stock in a transaction on Monday, June 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.71, for a total value of $3,249,789.95. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 50,898,490 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,940,362,767.90. The trade was a 0.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Joseph L. Moskowitz sold 12,370 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.54, for a total transaction of $1,441,599.80. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 33,310 shares in the company, valued at $3,881,947.40. This represents a 27.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 744,916 shares of company stock valued at $87,118,632 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.80% of the company's stock.

Aflac Company 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.

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