Allworth Financial LP Purchases New Holdings in Aflac Incorporated $AFL

Allworth Financial LP acquired a new position in shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 33,858 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $3,970,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of AFL. Stephens Inc. AR grew its stake in Aflac by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Stephens Inc. AR now owns 21,945 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,420,000 after buying an additional 91 shares in the last quarter. Compound Planning Inc. raised its position in shares of Aflac by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. Compound Planning Inc. now owns 13,743 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,508,000 after buying an additional 91 shares in the last quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Aflac by 4.5% during the 4th quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 2,119 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $234,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares during the period. CENTRAL TRUST Co lifted its holdings in shares of Aflac by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 19,088 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,105,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares during the period. Finally, HBK Sorce Advisory LLC boosted its position in shares of Aflac by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 7,702 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $902,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. 67.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

More Aflac News

Here are the key news stories impacting Aflac this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Aflac continues to offer a defensive income profile, with 43 consecutive years of dividend increases. The company raised its quarterly dividend by 5.2% earlier this year, bringing the annualized payout to $2.44 per share and the yield to roughly 2.1%. This Dividend Stock Has a Realistic Shot at Becoming a Dividend King
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent quarterly results were mixed: earnings per share of $1.75 narrowly missed estimates, while $4.22 billion in revenue exceeded forecasts. However, revenue declined 1% year over year and EPS fell from $1.78 in the prior-year period, limiting the earnings-related support for the stock.
• Negative Sentiment: Wolfe Research began coverage at “underperform” with a $103 target, citing a valuation or outlook that appears less attractive than other analysts’ views. The target is below Aflac’s 200-day moving average and the current consensus target near $116. Wolfe Research Starts Aflac at Underperform
• Negative Sentiment: Japan Post Holdings, a major Aflac shareholder, disclosed several sales totaling about 42,000 shares during August 14–18, including a $1.73 million sale on August 18. The transactions were executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan and reduced its position by only about 0.03%, so the direct supply impact is limited, but the repeated selling may weigh on sentiment. Major AFLAC Stakeholder Makes Bold Move With High-Value Stock Sale

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Aflac from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "hold" rating and set a $108.00 target price (up from $100.00) on shares of Aflac in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $138.00 target price (up from $130.00) on shares of Aflac in a report on Monday, August 10th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Aflac in a research note on Wednesday. They issued an "underperform" rating and a $103.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on Aflac from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Aflac presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $116.62.

Insider Transactions at Aflac

In other Aflac news, major shareholder Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 63,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.12, for a total value of $7,441,560.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 51,169,435 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,044,133,662.20. This trade represents a 0.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 484,925 shares of company stock valued at $56,869,948. 0.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Aflac Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of Aflac stock opened at $116.16 on Friday. The firm's 50 day moving average is $121.58 and its 200 day moving average is $116.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $58.24 billion, a PE ratio of 12.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 0.60. Aflac Incorporated has a 1 year low of $104.66 and a 1 year high of $130.22. The company has a current ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 0.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.75 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.76 by ($0.01). Aflac had a net margin of 26.91% and a return on equity of 13.27%. The company had revenue of $4.22 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.11 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.78 EPS. Aflac's revenue for the quarter was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Aflac Incorporated will post 7.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Aflac Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 19th will be issued a $0.61 dividend. This represents a $2.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 19th. Aflac's dividend payout ratio is presently 26.15%.

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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