Aflac Incorporated $AFL Stock Position Raised by ABN Amro Investment Solutions

Key Points

• ABN Amro Investment Solutions boosted its Aflac stake by 596.7% in the fourth quarter, adding 20,253 shares and bringing its total holdings to 23,647 shares worth about $2.61 million.
• Aflac reported Q1 earnings of $1.75 per share, which missed analysts’ estimate of $1.80, though revenue came in slightly above expectations at $4.24 billion and was up 27.9% year over year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.61 per share, equal to an annualized yield of about 2.1%, while analysts’ overall view remains Hold with a consensus price target of $111.82.

ABN Amro Investment Solutions increased its position in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL - Free Report) by 596.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 23,647 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 20,253 shares during the period. ABN Amro Investment Solutions' holdings in Aflac were worth $2,608,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AFL. Stephens Inc. AR raised its position in Aflac by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Stephens Inc. AR now owns 21,945 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,420,000 after buying an additional 91 shares during the period. CENTRAL TRUST Co raised its position in Aflac by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 19,088 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,105,000 after buying an additional 95 shares during the period. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. raised its position in Aflac by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. now owns 11,923 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,315,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the period. Sigma Planning Corp raised its position in Aflac by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Sigma Planning Corp now owns 9,831 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,088,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the period. Finally, First Horizon Corp raised its position in Aflac by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 2,939 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $324,000 after buying an additional 98 shares during the period. 67.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Aflac Price Performance

NYSE AFL opened at $117.78 on Friday. Aflac Incorporated has a twelve month low of $96.95 and a twelve month high of $119.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 0.11 and a current ratio of 0.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $59.95 billion, a PE ratio of 13.37, a P/E/G ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 0.62. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $112.48 and a 200 day simple moving average of $111.65.

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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.20 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.66 EPS. Aflac's revenue for the quarter was up 27.9% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Aflac Incorporated will post 7.11 EPS for the current year.

Aflac Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings raised Aflac from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (a-)" rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Piper Sandler dropped their price target on Aflac from $130.00 to $125.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Mizuho set a $104.00 price target on Aflac in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on Aflac from $113.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Aflac from $116.00 to $111.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $111.82.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Aflac news, major shareholder Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 166,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $112.38, for a total value of $18,655,080.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 51,723,100 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,812,641,978. This represents a 0.32% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 814,028 shares of company stock valued at $91,815,931. Corporate insiders own 0.80% of the company's stock.

About Aflac

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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