Sawgrass Asset Management LLC Trims Stake in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL)

Sawgrass Asset Management LLC reduced its position in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 6.1% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 23,188 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,505 shares during the period. Sawgrass Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Aflac were worth $2,399,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Aflac in the 3rd quarter worth about $34,000. Raelipskie Partnership purchased a new stake in Aflac in the 3rd quarter worth about $38,000. Covestor Ltd raised its position in Aflac by 41.8% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 363 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the period. Kennebec Savings Bank purchased a new position in shares of Aflac during the third quarter worth approximately $45,000. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Aflac during the third quarter worth approximately $51,000. 67.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Aflac

In other news, EVP Audrey B. Tillman sold 24,744 shares of Aflac stock in a transaction on Friday, December 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.40, for a total transaction of $2,558,529.60. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 222,618 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,018,701.20. The trade was a 10.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

Aflac Stock Performance

Shares of AFL stock opened at $102.98 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $57.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.73, a PEG ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 0.99. The company’s 50 day moving average is $104.41 and its 200 day moving average is $107.07. The company has a quick ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 0.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. Aflac Incorporated has a 52-week low of $77.01 and a 52-week high of $115.50.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $1.56 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.63 by ($0.07). Aflac had a net margin of 28.76% and a return on equity of 16.20%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Aflac Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 19th will be paid a dividend of $0.58 per share. This is an increase from Aflac’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. This represents a $2.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.25%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 19th. Aflac’s payout ratio is presently 20.83%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AFL has been the topic of a number of research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on shares of Aflac from $107.00 to $104.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Aflac from $90.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Aflac from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Aflac from $98.00 to $95.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Piper Sandler reduced their target price on shares of Aflac from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $103.00.

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.