Cidel Asset Management Inc. Sells 150 Shares of Aflac Incorporated $AFL

Cidel Asset Management Inc. lessened its position in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 3.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,819 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 150 shares during the quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Aflac were worth $403,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its stake in shares of Aflac by 1.1% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 5,307,681 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $590,161,000 after acquiring an additional 56,776 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Aflac by 10.8% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 3,575,054 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $397,510,000 after acquiring an additional 349,787 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG grew its stake in shares of Aflac by 0.8% in the first quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 1,730,739 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $192,441,000 after acquiring an additional 13,575 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its stake in shares of Aflac by 4.3% in the second quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,703,397 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $178,056,000 after acquiring an additional 70,244 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. grew its stake in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 343,881 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 67.44% of the company’s stock.

Aflac Stock Up 1.0%

Shares of NYSE:AFL opened at $107.82 on Monday. Aflac Incorporated has a 52 week low of $96.95 and a 52 week high of $115.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.11 and a current ratio of 0.11. The company’s fifty day moving average is $108.36 and its 200-day moving average is $105.37. The company has a market capitalization of $57.66 billion, a PE ratio of 24.45, a P/E/G ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.86.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last issued its earnings results on Monday, February 27th. The financial services provider reported $1.07 EPS for the quarter. Aflac had a net margin of 15.32% and a return on equity of 15.08%. The company had revenue of $5.91 billion for the quarter. Equities research analysts predict that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Aflac declared that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Tuesday, August 12th that allows the company to repurchase 100,000,000 shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Aflac Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 20th were paid a $0.58 dividend. This represents a $2.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 20th. Aflac’s payout ratio is currently 52.61%.

Insider Activity at Aflac

In other news, Director Joseph L. Moskowitz sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.57, for a total value of $102,570.00. Following the sale, the director owned 25,105 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,575,019.85. The trade was a 3.83% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Aflac from $108.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 18th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Aflac from $105.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 11th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Aflac from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Aflac from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Aflac from $114.00 to $111.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Aflac has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $109.45.

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.