Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. Cuts Stake in Aflac Incorporated $AFL

Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. lessened its stake in shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 3.2% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 184,754 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 6,054 shares during the period. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Aflac were worth $20,621,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in shares of Aflac by 16.7% during the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,167,886 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $439,545,000 after acquiring an additional 594,971 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Aflac in the second quarter valued at approximately $432,201,000. Guinness Asset Management LTD lifted its stake in Aflac by 19.4% in the second quarter. Guinness Asset Management LTD now owns 2,372,484 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $250,187,000 after purchasing an additional 385,546 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its holdings in Aflac by 3.8% during the third quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,768,705 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $196,662,000 after purchasing an additional 65,308 shares during the period. Finally, Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. increased its position in Aflac by 26.2% in the second quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 1,654,802 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $174,515,000 after buying an additional 343,881 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 67.44% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on AFL shares. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Aflac from $107.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 7th. Piper Sandler set a $125.00 price objective on Aflac and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 7th. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Aflac in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Morgan Stanley set a $120.00 target price on shares of Aflac in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Finally, Mizuho initiated coverage on shares of Aflac in a research report on Tuesday, December 16th. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $104.00 price target on the stock. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $110.64.

Aflac Stock Down 1.1%

AFL stock opened at $107.08 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $109.89 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $107.98. Aflac Incorporated has a twelve month low of $96.95 and a twelve month high of $115.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $56.12 billion, a PE ratio of 13.98, a PEG ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a quick ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 0.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.49 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.77 by $0.72. The company had revenue of $4.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.36 billion. Aflac had a net margin of 23.55% and a return on equity of 14.97%. Aflac’s revenue was up 59.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.16 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Aflac Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 2nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 18th will be given a dividend of $0.61 per share. This is an increase from Aflac’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 18th. This represents a $2.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. Aflac’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.29%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Audrey B. Tillman sold 15,862 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $112.00, for a total value of $1,776,544.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 230,688 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,837,056. This represents a 6.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Frederic Jean Guy Simard sold 1,722 shares of Aflac stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $112.50, for a total value of $193,725.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 1,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $153,450. This represents a 55.80% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders sold 31,766 shares of company stock worth $3,549,706. Company insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

Aflac Company 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.