HM Payson & Co. Decreases Stake in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL)

HM Payson & Co. reduced its position in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 1.6% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 178,444 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 2,869 shares during the period. HM Payson & Co.’s holdings in Aflac were worth $18,458,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac in the 3rd quarter valued at about $34,000. BankPlus Trust Department acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac in the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. Raelipskie Partnership acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac in the 3rd quarter valued at about $38,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd raised its stake in shares of Aflac by 41.8% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 363 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.44% of the company’s stock.

Aflac Price Performance

NYSE AFL opened at $108.48 on Friday. Aflac Incorporated has a 52 week low of $79.31 and a 52 week high of $115.50. The company has a current ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 0.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The stock has a market cap of $59.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $105.08 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $107.70.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $1.56 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.63 by ($0.07). Aflac had a return on equity of 16.20% and a net margin of 28.76%. Analysts forecast that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.88 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of Aflac in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $111.00 target price on the stock. Piper Sandler cut their target price on shares of Aflac from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Aflac from $104.00 to $102.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on shares of Aflac from $104.00 to $102.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Aflac from $98.00 to $95.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $103.36.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Audrey B. Tillman sold 24,744 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 27th. The shares were 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 directly owns 222,618 shares in the company, valued at $23,018,701.20. This trade represents a 10.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

Aflac 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.