Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) EVP Sells $2,558,529.60 in Stock

Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) EVP Audrey B. Tillman sold 24,744 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.40, for a total value of $2,558,529.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 222,618 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,018,701.20. The trade was a 10.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Aflac Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of AFL opened at $103.44 on Wednesday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $107.67 and its 200-day simple moving average is $104.18. The company has a market cap of $57.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.58, a P/E/G ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a current ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 0.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. Aflac Incorporated has a twelve month low of $75.07 and a twelve month high of $115.50.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.16 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.69 by $0.47. Aflac had a net margin of 22.02% and a return on equity of 16.34%. The company had revenue of $2.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.30 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.84 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 40.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Aflac Incorporated will post 7.27 EPS for the current year.

Aflac Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.58 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 19th. This represents a $2.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.24%. This is a boost from Aflac’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Aflac’s payout ratio is presently 34.94%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on shares of Aflac from $104.00 to $102.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. StockNews.com cut shares of Aflac from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday. TD Cowen initiated coverage on Aflac in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. They set a “hold” rating and a $102.00 price objective for the company. Bank of America boosted their target price on Aflac from $115.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Aflac to $107.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $98.73.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Aflac

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Y.D. More Investments Ltd bought a new stake in Aflac during the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Aflac during the third quarter worth approximately $34,000. Raelipskie Partnership bought a new stake in shares of Aflac during the third quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Aflac by 41.8% in the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 363 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the period. Finally, Kennebec Savings Bank bought a new position in Aflac in the third quarter worth approximately $45,000. Institutional investors own 67.44% of the company’s stock.

Aflac Company 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.