Aflac Incorporated $AFL Stock Holdings Lessened by Guinness Asset Management LTD

Key Points

• Guinness Asset Management trimmed its Aflac stake by 3.0% in the fourth quarter, selling 71,809 shares and leaving it with 2.3 million shares worth about $252.4 million.
• Several other institutional investors adjusted positions in Aflac, while hedge funds and other institutions still control 67.44% of the company’s shares.
• Analysts currently rate Aflac at a Hold overall, with a consensus price target of $111.82; the stock recently traded near $117.78 after Aflac reported earnings of $1.75 per share, below estimates, and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.61 per share.

Guinness Asset Management LTD decreased its stake in shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL - Free Report) by 3.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,301,154 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 71,809 shares during the period. Aflac comprises about 4.1% of Guinness Asset Management LTD's holdings, making the stock its 7th largest position. Guinness Asset Management LTD owned approximately 0.44% of Aflac worth $252,409,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Evoke Wealth LLC boosted its position in shares of Aflac by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Evoke Wealth LLC now owns 9,613 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,060,000 after buying an additional 326 shares during the last quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Aflac by 819.6% during the fourth quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 20,866 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,301,000 after buying an additional 18,597 shares during the last quarter. Kingdom Financial Group LLC. purchased a new position in shares of Aflac during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $578,000. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Aflac by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 69,348 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $7,647,000 after buying an additional 2,056 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Plan A Wealth LLC boosted its position in shares of Aflac by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Plan A Wealth LLC now owns 6,311 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $696,000 after buying an additional 146 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.44% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on AFL. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Aflac from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday. Mizuho set a $104.00 price objective on Aflac in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Evercore raised Aflac from a "strong sell" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. UBS Group cut their price objective on Aflac from $116.00 to $114.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, Barclays set a $99.00 price objective on Aflac and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Aflac has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $111.82.

Aflac Stock Down 0.0%

AFL stock opened at $117.78 on Friday. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $112.48 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $111.65. The company has a current ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 0.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. Aflac Incorporated has a 1-year low of $96.95 and a 1-year high of $119.81. The stock has a market cap of $59.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.37, a P/E/G ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 0.62.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The financial services provider reported $1.75 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.80 by ($0.05). Aflac had a return on equity of 13.88% and a net margin of 25.60%.The business had revenue of $4.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.20 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.66 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 27.9% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Aflac Incorporated will post 7.11 EPS for the current year.

Aflac Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 20th will be paid a $0.61 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 20th. This represents a $2.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Aflac's payout ratio is presently 27.70%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Aflac

In other Aflac news, Director Thomas J. Kenny sold 1,740 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.57, for a total value of $202,831.80. Following the sale, the director directly owned 13,219 shares in the company, valued at $1,540,938.83. The trade was a 11.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Arthur Reginald Collins sold 2,300 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.55, for a total value of $268,065.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 6,186 shares in the company, valued at approximately $720,978.30. The trade was a 27.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 814,028 shares of company stock worth $91,815,931 over the last ninety days. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.

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