Independent Financial Group LLC Makes New $770,000 Investment in Aflac Incorporated $AFL

Independent Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund purchased 7,023 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $770,000.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of AFL. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Aflac in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in Aflac during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Nalls Sherbakoff Group LLC bought a new position in Aflac in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Evergreen Advisors LLC bought a new position in Aflac in the first quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Navalign LLC acquired a new position in shares of Aflac in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Institutional investors own 67.44% of the company’s stock.

Aflac Price Performance

Shares of AFL opened at $123.34 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $62.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.00, a P/E/G ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 0.61. Aflac Incorporated has a twelve month low of $96.95 and a twelve month high of $125.93. The company has a 50 day moving average of $118.14 and a 200-day moving average of $113.92. The company has a quick ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 0.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The financial services provider reported $1.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.80 by ($0.05). The business had revenue of $4.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.20 billion. Aflac had a net margin of 25.60% and a return on equity of 13.88%. Aflac’s revenue for the quarter was up 27.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.66 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Aflac Incorporated will post 7.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Aflac Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 20th were paid a $0.61 dividend. This represents a $2.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 20th. Aflac’s payout ratio is presently 27.70%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Aflac from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Aflac from $108.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Aflac from $111.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on Aflac from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Finally, Evercore raised Aflac from a “strong sell” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Aflac has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $115.50.

Insider Buying and Selling at Aflac

In other news, major shareholder Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 27,845 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.71, for a total value of $3,249,789.95. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 50,898,490 shares in the company, valued at $5,940,362,767.90. This trade represents a 0.05% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Joseph L. Moskowitz sold 12,370 shares of Aflac stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.54, for a total value of $1,441,599.80. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 33,310 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,881,947.40. This represents a 27.08% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 744,916 shares of company stock worth $87,118,632 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.80% 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.