QRG Capital Management Inc. Decreases Position in Aflac Incorporated $AFL

QRG Capital Management Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 75.6% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 96,244 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 298,782 shares during the quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Aflac were worth $10,750,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. raised its position in Aflac by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. now owns 11,827 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,321,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Duncan Williams Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Aflac by 5.0% in the second quarter. Duncan Williams Asset Management LLC now owns 2,065 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $218,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC lifted its stake in Aflac by 5.1% in the third quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 2,037 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $227,000 after acquiring an additional 99 shares during the last quarter. Stiles Financial Services Inc grew its holdings in Aflac by 3.4% during the 2nd quarter. Stiles Financial Services Inc now owns 3,070 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $324,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Smith Moore & CO. increased its position in shares of Aflac by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter. Smith Moore & CO. now owns 6,143 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $648,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. 67.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AFL has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $119.00 target price (up previously from $110.00) on shares of Aflac in a research note on Tuesday, December 30th. Morgan Stanley set a $120.00 price target on shares of Aflac in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Cowen restated a “hold” rating on shares of Aflac in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Aflac from $100.00 to $102.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. Finally, Barclays set a $101.00 price target on shares of Aflac and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $110.67.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Frederic Jean Guy Simard sold 1,722 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $112.50, for a total value of $193,725.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 1,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $153,450. The trade was a 55.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Audrey B. Tillman sold 15,862 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $112.00, for a total value of $1,776,544.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 230,688 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,837,056. This represents a 6.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 31,766 shares of company stock valued at $3,549,706. Company insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

Aflac Stock Down 0.0%

AFL stock opened at $109.57 on Friday. Aflac Incorporated has a 12 month low of $96.95 and a 12 month high of $115.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.11 and a quick ratio of 0.11. The company has a market cap of $57.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $110.46 and a 200 day moving average price of $107.81.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.49 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.77 by $0.72. Aflac had a net margin of 23.55% and a return on equity of 14.97%. The company had revenue of $4.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.36 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.16 earnings per share. Aflac’s quarterly revenue was up 59.4% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Aflac Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 2nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 18th will be given a dividend of $0.61 per share. This represents a $2.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 18th. This is a positive change from Aflac’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. Aflac’s payout ratio is 31.85%.

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.