Schaper Benz & Wise Investment Counsel Inc. WI Cuts Position in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL)

Schaper Benz & Wise Investment Counsel Inc. WI decreased its holdings in shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL - Free Report) by 4.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 229,187 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 11,281 shares during the period. Aflac comprises approximately 2.1% of Schaper Benz & Wise Investment Counsel Inc. WI's investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest holding. Schaper Benz & Wise Investment Counsel Inc. WI's holdings in Aflac were worth $25,483,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Aflac in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. BankPlus Trust Department acquired a new position in Aflac in the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Curio Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Aflac in the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new stake in Aflac during the 4th quarter worth $38,000. Finally, Capital A Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Aflac during the 4th quarter worth $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.44% of the company's stock.

Aflac Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of AFL traded down $0.64 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $102.08. 2,056,898 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,115,711. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $105.15 and a 200-day simple moving average of $105.39. The stock has a market cap of $55.19 billion, a PE ratio of 10.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 0.82. Aflac Incorporated has a twelve month low of $86.55 and a twelve month high of $115.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 0.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

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 the consensus estimate of $1.67 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $3.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.53 billion. Aflac had a net margin of 28.76% and a return on equity of 16.20%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 37.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.66 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Aflac Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 2nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 21st were issued 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 2.27%. Aflac's dividend payout ratio is presently 36.25%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Arthur Reginald Collins sold 2,750 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.70, for a total transaction of $290,675.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 6,728 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $711,149.60. This represents a 29.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Joseph L. Moskowitz sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 8th. The shares were 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 approximately $2,786,791.84. The trade was a 3.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 40,750 shares of company stock valued at $4,304,295. Corporate insiders own 0.90% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AFL has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Aflac from $109.00 to $114.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Aflac from $94.00 to $96.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Aflac from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, May 19th. Piper Sandler increased 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. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on Aflac from $95.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $104.93.

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.