USS Investment Management Ltd Has $9.03 Million Stock Position in Aflac Incorporated $AFL

Key Points

• USS Investment Management Ltd has reduced its stake in Aflac Incorporated by 34.9%, selling 43,600 shares, leaving them with a total of 81,173 shares valued at approximately $9 million.
• Aflac recently declared a $0.58 quarterly dividend and has authorized a stock buyback plan to repurchase up to 100 million shares, indicating confidence in the company's valuation.
• Analysts have adjusted Aflac's price targets, with the consensus target price now at $109.15, while the company's stock was reported down 1.5% recently.

USS Investment Management Ltd trimmed its position in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL - Free Report) by 34.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 81,173 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 43,600 shares during the period. USS Investment Management Ltd's holdings in Aflac were worth $9,025,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd raised its position in shares of Aflac by 3.1% in the 1st quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd now owns 41,128 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $4,573,000 after acquiring an additional 1,221 shares during the period. Plancorp LLC raised its position in shares of Aflac by 1.9% in the 1st quarter. Plancorp LLC now owns 5,774 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $642,000 after acquiring an additional 109 shares during the period. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV increased its stake in Aflac by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV now owns 68,747 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $7,644,000 after purchasing an additional 398 shares in the last quarter. Nearwater Capital Markets Ltd bought a new stake in Aflac during the 1st quarter worth approximately $15,567,000. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its stake in Aflac by 7.4% during the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 148,829 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $16,548,000 after purchasing an additional 10,303 shares in the last quarter. 67.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Aflac

In other Aflac news, Director Joseph L. Moskowitz sold 1,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.57, for a total transaction of $102,570.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 25,105 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,575,019.85. This trade represents a 3.83% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Aflac from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Evercore ISI reissued an "underperform" rating and set a $106.00 target price (up from $105.00) on shares of Aflac in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. Barclays set a $98.00 target price on Aflac and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 7th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Aflac from $105.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, August 11th. Finally, Raymond James Financial lowered their target price on Aflac from $115.00 to $110.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $109.15.

Aflac Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of NYSE AFL traded up $0.44 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $109.13. The company had a trading volume of 904,558 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,204,689. The stock has a market capitalization of $58.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a quick ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 0.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. Aflac Incorporated has a 1-year low of $96.95 and a 1-year high of $115.50. The firm's 50 day moving average is $104.00 and its 200-day moving average is $105.17.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The financial services provider reported $1.78 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.71 by $0.07. Aflac had a return on equity of 15.08% and a net margin of 15.32%.The company had revenue of $4.16 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.30 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.83 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 19.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Aflac announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, August 12th that allows the company to buyback 100,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Aflac Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 20th were issued a dividend of $0.58 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 20th. This represents a $2.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. Aflac's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 52.61%.

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.