Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Makes New $145.68 Million Investment in Aflac Incorporated $AFL

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund bought 1,242,427 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $145,675,000.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Aflac by 13.4% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 57,142,072 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $6,301,056,000 after purchasing an additional 6,759,169 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac during the 4th quarter worth approximately $420,078,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $298,418,000. First Trust Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Aflac by 161.9% during the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 3,184,801 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $349,405,000 after buying an additional 1,968,738 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Aflac by 1,184.5% in the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,264,090 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $141,199,000 after buying an additional 1,165,676 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.44% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Aflac

In other Aflac news, major shareholder Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 63,000 shares of Aflac stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.12, for a total value of $7,441,560.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 51,169,435 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,044,133,662.20. This trade represents a 0.12% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders sold 523,833 shares of company stock worth $61,339,113. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have commented on AFL. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Aflac from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Barclays restated an “underweight” rating and issued a $99.00 price target (up from $98.00) on shares of Aflac in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Weiss Ratings cut Aflac from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating and set a $108.00 price objective (up from $100.00) on shares of Aflac in a report on Friday, July 10th. Finally, Mizuho set a $116.00 target price on shares of Aflac in a report on Monday, August 10th. One investment 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 issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $117.58.

Aflac Stock Performance

Shares of AFL stock opened at $121.74 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.12 and a current ratio of 0.12. Aflac Incorporated has a 52 week low of $104.66 and a 52 week high of $130.22. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $121.60 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $116.04. The company has a market capitalization of $61.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 0.60.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.75 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.76 by ($0.01). Aflac had a net margin of 26.91% and a return on equity of 13.27%. The company had revenue of $4.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.11 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.78 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Aflac Incorporated will post 7.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Aflac Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.61 per share. This represents a $2.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 19th. Aflac’s dividend payout ratio is 26.15%.

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.