Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) Shares Sold by Bessemer Group Inc.

Bessemer Group Inc. cut its stake in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL - Free Report) by 58.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 27,633 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 39,657 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc.'s holdings in Aflac were worth $3,071,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AFL. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in Aflac by 64.4% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 14,570 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,507,000 after acquiring an additional 5,708 shares in the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc raised its holdings in Aflac by 169.8% in the fourth quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 5,725 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $592,000 after acquiring an additional 3,603 shares in the last quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Aflac in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. raised its holdings in Aflac by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. now owns 218,200 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $22,571,000 after acquiring an additional 4,200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Aflac in the fourth quarter valued at $192,000. 67.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Aflac Stock Performance

NYSE AFL traded up $0.27 on Tuesday, hitting $105.73. The stock had a trading volume of 2,519,024 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,151,401. Aflac Incorporated has a one year low of $88.00 and a one year high of $115.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 0.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The stock has a market cap of $57.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.52, a P/E/G ratio of 3.26 and a beta of 0.81. The company's 50-day moving average is $104.51 and its two-hundred day moving average is $105.22.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.66 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.67 by ($0.01). Aflac had a return on equity of 15.55% and a net margin of 21.27%. The firm had revenue of $3.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.53 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.66 EPS. Aflac's revenue for the quarter was down 37.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Aflac Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 2nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 21st were issued a $0.58 dividend. This represents a $2.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.19%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 21st. Aflac's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.25%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Aflac from $95.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Aflac from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of Aflac from $104.00 to $106.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Aflac from $94.00 to $96.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Aflac from $109.00 to $114.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Aflac currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $106.50.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Arthur Reginald Collins sold 2,750 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.70, for a total value of $290,675.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 6,728 shares in the company, valued at $711,149.60. This trade represents a 29.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Joseph L. Moskowitz sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.79, for a total transaction of $106,790.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 26,096 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,786,791.84. This trade represents a 3.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 40,750 shares of company stock worth $4,304,295 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.80% of the company's stock.

Aflac Profile

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.