1,265,811 Shares in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) Purchased by Nuveen LLC

Key Points

• Nuveen LLC has acquired a new stake in Aflac Incorporated, purchasing over 1.26 million shares valued at approximately $140.7 million, bringing its ownership to 0.23%.
• Aflac's quarterly earnings report revealed an EPS of $1.78, which exceeded analysts' expectations, although revenue of $4.16 billion fell short of the $4.30 billion consensus.
• The firm's dividend of $0.58 per share will be paid to shareholders on September 2nd, representing an annualized yield of 2.2% with a dividend payout ratio of 52.61%.

Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 1,265,811 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $140,746,000. Nuveen LLC owned 0.23% of Aflac at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in AFL. AlphaCore Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Aflac in the first quarter worth about $28,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Aflac by 121.9% during 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. Garde Capital Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Aflac in the first quarter worth approximately $36,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Aflac by 90.8% in the first quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 330 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 157 shares during the period. Finally, Capital A Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Aflac in the fourth quarter worth $38,000. Institutional investors own 67.44% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on AFL shares. Barclays set a $98.00 price target on shares of Aflac and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Monday, July 7th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Aflac from $105.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, August 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Aflac from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on Aflac from $106.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Monday, August 11th. Finally, Raymond James Financial dropped their price objective on Aflac from $115.00 to $110.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $108.54.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Masatoshi Koide sold 37,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.59, for a total transaction of $3,906,830.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 70,992 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,496,045.28. This trade represents a 34.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Joseph L. Moskowitz sold 1,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.57, for a total transaction of $102,570.00. Following the sale, the director owned 25,105 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,575,019.85. This represents a 3.83% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.90% of the company's stock.

Aflac Trading Up 0.0%

Shares of NYSE:AFL traded up $0.05 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $105.35. 2,645,887 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,582,534. The stock has a market capitalization of $56.34 billion, a PE ratio of 23.89, a P/E/G ratio of 2.96 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 0.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The business's 50 day moving average is $102.56 and its two-hundred day moving average is $104.85. Aflac Incorporated has a one year low of $96.95 and a one year high of $115.50.

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

Aflac Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 20th will be issued a $0.58 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 20th. This represents a $2.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. Aflac's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 52.61%.

Aflac announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Tuesday, August 12th that permits the company to buyback 100,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

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.