Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) Shares Sold by Mizuho Securities USA LLC

Key Points

• Mizuho Securities USA LLC reduced its holdings in Aflac Incorporated by 16.4%, now owning 39,632 shares worth approximately $4.4 million following the sale of over 7,700 shares in the first quarter.
• Aflac reported $1.78 earnings per share for the latest quarter, which beat analysts' estimates but saw a 19% decrease in year-over-year revenue.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.58 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of around 2.2%.

Mizuho Securities USA LLC cut its holdings in shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL - Free Report) by 16.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 39,632 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 7,754 shares during the period. Mizuho Securities USA LLC's holdings in Aflac were worth $4,407,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. AlphaCore Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac during the first quarter valued at about $28,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Aflac by 121.9% during the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 304 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 167 shares in the last quarter. Garde Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac during the first quarter valued at about $36,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Aflac by 90.8% during the first quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 330 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 157 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital A Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac during the fourth quarter valued at about $38,000. 67.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Aflac Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE AFL opened at $103.48 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 0.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $102.41 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $104.89. Aflac Incorporated has a 52-week low of $96.95 and a 52-week high of $115.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $55.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.46, a P/E/G ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 0.83.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The financial services provider reported $1.78 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.71 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $4.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.30 billion. Aflac had a return on equity of 15.08% and a net margin of 15.32%. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 19.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.83 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Aflac Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.58 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 20th. This represents a $2.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. Aflac's payout ratio is presently 52.61%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AFL has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Raymond James Financial lowered their target price on Aflac from $115.00 to $110.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. UBS Group decreased their price target on Aflac from $114.00 to $111.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on Aflac from $104.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Aflac from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Aflac from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $107.92.

Insider Activity at Aflac

In related news, Director Masatoshi Koide sold 37,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.59, for a total transaction of $3,906,830.00. Following the sale, the director owned 70,992 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,496,045.28. The trade was a 34.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Arthur Reginald Collins sold 2,750 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.70, for a total value of $290,675.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 6,728 shares in the company, valued at approximately $711,149.60. The trade was a 29.01% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Aflac

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.

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