Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Purchases 124,452 Shares of Aflac Incorporated $AFL

Key Points

• Zurcher Kantonalbank increased its Aflac stake by 51.7%, buying 124,452 shares to hold 365,189 shares worth about $40.27 million (roughly 0.07% of the company).
• Major shareholder Post Holdings sold 166,000 Aflac shares on April 8 under a Rule 10b5-1 plan, and company insiders have sold 572,632 shares (≈$63.5 million) in the past 90 days.
• Aflac recently missed quarterly estimates—EPS $1.57 vs. $1.69 expected and revenue $4.28B vs. $4.45B—its stock trades near $114.67 with an average analyst rating of Hold and a consensus target of $111.82.

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its position in shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL - Free Report) by 51.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 365,189 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 124,452 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank owned approximately 0.07% of Aflac worth $40,269,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of AFL. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. grew its stake in shares of Aflac by 0.8% in the third quarter. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. now owns 11,827 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,321,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Courier Capital LLC raised its stake in Aflac by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter. Courier Capital LLC now owns 2,597 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $290,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. First Horizon Corp boosted its holdings in Aflac by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 2,939 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $324,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the period. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC boosted its holdings in Aflac by 5.1% in the 3rd quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 2,037 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $227,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the period. Finally, Stiles Financial Services Inc grew its position in shares of Aflac by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. Stiles Financial Services Inc now owns 3,169 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $354,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.44% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, major shareholder Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 166,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $112.38, for a total transaction of $18,655,080.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 51,723,100 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,812,641,978. The trade was a 0.32% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 572,632 shares of company stock valued at $63,514,634. Company insiders own 0.80% of the company's stock.

Aflac Stock Performance

Shares of Aflac stock opened at $114.67 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $111.33 and a 200-day moving average of $110.64. Aflac Incorporated has a 1-year low of $96.95 and a 1-year high of $119.32. The company has a current ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 0.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The company has a market cap of $59.07 billion, a PE ratio of 16.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.14 and a beta of 0.66.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $1.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.69 by ($0.12). Aflac had a net margin of 21.24% and a return on equity of 14.35%. The firm had revenue of $4.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.45 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.57 earnings per share. The business's revenue was down 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Aflac Incorporated will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Aflac from $116.00 to $114.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Raymond James Financial reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $119.00 price target (up from $110.00) on shares of Aflac in a research report on Tuesday, December 30th. Barclays set a $101.00 price objective on Aflac and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Aflac from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, February 28th. Finally, TD Cowen reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Aflac in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $111.82.

About Aflac

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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