Greatmark Investment Partners Inc. Sells 4,538 Shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL)

Greatmark Investment Partners Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL - Free Report) by 0.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 505,971 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 4,538 shares during the period. Aflac makes up approximately 7.7% of Greatmark Investment Partners Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its largest position. Greatmark Investment Partners Inc. owned about 0.09% of Aflac worth $56,259,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Golden State Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Aflac by 121.9% in the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 304 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares in the last quarter. Curio Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Garde Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Capital A Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $44,000. 67.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on AFL. Raymond James Financial cut their target price on shares of Aflac from $115.00 to $110.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of Aflac from $118.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Aflac from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Aflac from $103.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Barclays set a $98.00 target price on shares of Aflac and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 7th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Aflac currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $107.07.

Aflac Stock Down 0.7%

Aflac stock opened at $101.56 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.09 and a current ratio of 0.09. Aflac Incorporated has a 52-week low of $92.44 and a 52-week high of $115.50. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $103.79 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $105.25. The firm has a market cap of $54.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.87, a PEG ratio of 3.14 and a beta of 0.81.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.66 earnings per share (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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.53 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.66 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 37.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.88 EPS 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 paid a $0.58 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 21st. This represents a $2.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.28%. Aflac's dividend payout ratio is currently 36.25%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Arthur Reginald Collins sold 2,750 shares of Aflac stock in a transaction 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 sale, the director owned 6,728 shares in the company, valued at $711,149.60. The trade was a 29.01% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Joseph L. Moskowitz sold 1,000 shares of Aflac stock in a transaction 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 sale, the director owned 26,096 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,786,791.84. This represents a 3.69% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 40,750 shares of company stock worth $4,304,295 in the last quarter. 0.90% of the stock is owned by corporate 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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