Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) Stock Position Decreased by Sabal Trust CO

Sabal Trust CO lowered its position in shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL - Free Report) by 4.2% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 341,875 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 14,934 shares during the period. Aflac comprises about 2.1% of Sabal Trust CO's holdings, making the stock its 8th largest holding. Sabal Trust CO owned approximately 0.06% of Aflac worth $38,013,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Aflac in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. BankPlus Trust Department purchased a new stake in Aflac during the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. Curio Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Aflac during the 4th quarter valued at about $36,000. Garde Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in Aflac during the 1st quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in Aflac during the 4th quarter valued at about $38,000. Institutional investors own 67.44% of the company's stock.

Aflac Stock Up 1.2%

Shares of AFL stock traded up $1.21 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $105.12. 11,667,977 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,152,036. Aflac Incorporated has a 1 year low of $88.00 and a 1 year high of $115.50. The company's 50 day moving average is $104.55 and its two-hundred day moving average is $105.19. The company has a current ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 0.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The firm has a market cap of $56.83 billion, a PE ratio of 16.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.22 and a beta of 0.82.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.66 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates 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 analysts' expectations of $4.53 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.66 EPS. The firm's revenue was down 37.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.88 EPS for the current year.

Aflac Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 2nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 21st were issued a dividend of $0.58 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 21st. This represents a $2.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.21%. Aflac's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.25%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on AFL shares. Wall Street Zen cut Aflac from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Aflac from $94.00 to $96.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on Aflac from $104.00 to $106.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. UBS Group increased their target price on Aflac from $109.00 to $114.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their price target on Aflac from $118.00 to $124.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $104.93.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Masatoshi Koide sold 37,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.59, for a total value of $3,906,830.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 70,992 shares in the company, valued at $7,496,045.28. This represents a 34.26% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Joseph L. Moskowitz sold 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.79, for a total value of $106,790.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 26,096 shares in the company, valued at $2,786,791.84. The trade was a 3.69% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 40,750 shares of company stock worth $4,304,295. Company insiders own 0.90% of the company's stock.

Aflac Company 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.