Quantinno Capital Management LP Has $57.01 Million Stock Position in Aflac Incorporated $AFL

Key Points

• Quantinno Capital Management increased its Aflac stake by 15.8% in the first quarter, purchasing 71,074 additional shares. The fund now owns 519,634 shares valued at approximately $57.01 million.
• Institutional investors own 67.44% of Aflac, with Vanguard, Norges Bank, First Trust Advisors, AQR Capital Management and Marshall Wace among those increasing or initiating positions.
• Aflac reported quarterly EPS of $1.75, slightly below the $1.80 consensus estimate, while revenue rose 27.9% year over year to $4.24 billion. Analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating with an average price target of $116.17.

Quantinno Capital Management LP increased its stake in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL - Free Report) by 15.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 519,634 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 71,074 shares during the quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP owned approximately 0.10% of Aflac worth $57,009,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Aflac by 13.4% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 57,142,072 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $6,301,056,000 after acquiring an additional 6,759,169 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Aflac in the 4th quarter valued at about $420,078,000. First Trust Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Aflac by 161.9% in the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 3,184,801 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $349,405,000 after purchasing an additional 1,968,738 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Aflac by 1,184.5% in the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,264,090 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $141,199,000 after purchasing an additional 1,165,676 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP grew its holdings in Aflac by 390.7% during the fourth quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,111,711 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $122,588,000 after purchasing an additional 885,141 shares during the period. 67.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Aflac Stock Performance

NYSE:AFL opened at $128.77 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $119.26 and a 200-day moving average price of $114.58. The company has a market cap of $65.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.62, a PEG ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 0.11 and a current ratio of 0.11. Aflac Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $96.95 and a fifty-two week high of $130.22.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The financial services provider reported $1.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.80 by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $4.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.20 billion. Aflac had a return on equity of 13.88% and a net margin of 25.60%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up 27.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.66 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Aflac Incorporated will post 7.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Aflac

In other Aflac news, Director Joseph L. Moskowitz sold 12,370 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.54, for a total value of $1,441,599.80. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 33,310 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,881,947.40. This trade represents a 27.08% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 27,845 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.71, for a total transaction of $3,249,789.95. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 50,898,490 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,940,362,767.90. The trade was a 0.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 744,916 shares of company stock worth $87,118,632 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.80% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AFL has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on Aflac from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Barclays cut their price target on Aflac from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Aflac from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Evercore raised shares of Aflac from a "strong sell" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "hold" rating and issued a $108.00 price objective (up from $100.00) on shares of Aflac in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $116.17.

Aflac 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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