Erste Asset Management GmbH Lowers Stock Position in Aflac Incorporated $AFL

Erste Asset Management GmbH cut its holdings in shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 61.9% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 29,070 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 47,215 shares during the period. Erste Asset Management GmbH’s holdings in Aflac were worth $3,237,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AFL. True Wealth Design LLC boosted its holdings in Aflac by 188.5% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 225 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 147 shares during the last quarter. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac in the second quarter valued at about $33,000. Westside Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Aflac by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 324 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 162 shares during the last quarter. JCIC Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac in the third quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Finally, Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Aflac by 110.9% during the 3rd quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 407 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 214 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.44% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on AFL shares. Morgan Stanley set a $120.00 price target on shares of Aflac in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Raymond James Financial reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $119.00 target price (up from $110.00) on shares of Aflac in a research report on Tuesday, December 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Aflac from $101.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Mizuho set a $107.00 price target on shares of Aflac in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Aflac from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $111.73.

Aflac Stock Down 1.1%

Aflac stock opened at $112.75 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $111.52 and a two-hundred day moving average of $110.03. Aflac Incorporated has a twelve month low of $96.95 and a twelve month 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 stock has a market capitalization of $58.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.39, a PEG ratio of 3.71 and a beta of 0.67.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $1.57 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.69 by ($0.12). The company had revenue of $4.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.45 billion. Aflac had a return on equity of 14.35% and a net margin of 21.24%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.57 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Steven Kent Beaver sold 7,387 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.58, for a total value of $839,015.46. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 40,526 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,602,943.08. The trade was a 15.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders sold 16,331 shares of company stock worth $1,817,720 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

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.