Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) Stake Cut by Security National Bank of Sioux City Iowa IA

Security National Bank of Sioux City Iowa IA lessened its stake in shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 0.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 33,724 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 153 shares during the quarter. Aflac comprises 2.4% of Security National Bank of Sioux City Iowa IA’s portfolio, making the stock its 6th largest holding. Security National Bank of Sioux City Iowa IA’s holdings in Aflac were worth $3,488,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in AFL. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Aflac during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $349,699,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Aflac during the 4th quarter valued at $163,409,000. Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in shares of Aflac by 22.9% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 7,296,014 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $754,700,000 after purchasing an additional 1,357,753 shares during the period. Amundi raised its position in shares of Aflac by 81.1% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 2,753,513 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $285,181,000 after buying an additional 1,232,683 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Aflac by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 51,340,298 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,310,640,000 after buying an additional 653,275 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.44% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Aflac

In related news, Director Joseph L. Moskowitz sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.79, for a total transaction of $106,790.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 26,096 shares in the company, valued at $2,786,791.84. This represents a 3.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Charles D. Lake II sold 29,802 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.29, for a total value of $3,197,456.58. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 49,962 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,360,422.98. The trade was a 37.36% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 31,802 shares of company stock worth $3,411,877. Company insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

Aflac Trading Up 1.8%

NYSE AFL opened at $105.73 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $57.16 billion, a PE ratio of 11.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 0.84. Aflac Incorporated has a 1-year low of $86.46 and a 1-year high of $115.50. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $106.99 and a 200-day moving average of $106.51. The company has a current ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 0.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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). Aflac had a net margin of 28.76% and a return on equity of 16.20%. The company had revenue of $3.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.53 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.66 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 37.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.88 EPS for the current year.

Aflac Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.58 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 21st. This represents a $2.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.19%. Aflac’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.25%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Aflac from $94.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of Aflac from $118.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. UBS Group lifted 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. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on shares of Aflac in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $111.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Aflac from $105.00 to $100.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Aflac presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $104.21.

Aflac 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.