Parallel Advisors LLC Grows Position in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL)

Parallel Advisors LLC raised its position in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 6.8% during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 8,092 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 513 shares during the period. Parallel Advisors LLC’s holdings in Aflac were worth $723,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Aflac by 22.6% in the fourth quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 86,010 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $7,096,000 after buying an additional 15,855 shares during the period. Southeast Asset Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Aflac by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Southeast Asset Advisors Inc. now owns 139,164 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $11,481,000 after acquiring an additional 589 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its position in Aflac by 6.7% in the 1st quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,806,475 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $155,140,000 after acquiring an additional 113,226 shares during the last quarter. Richard C. Young & CO. LTD. purchased a new stake in Aflac in the fourth quarter worth $12,546,000. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp lifted its position in shares of Aflac by 7.6% during the fourth quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 633,472 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $52,262,000 after purchasing an additional 44,875 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 67.44% of the company’s stock.

Aflac Price Performance

AFL opened at $110.17 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $61.70 billion, a PE ratio of 12.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.10 and a quick ratio of 0.10. The business’s 50-day moving average is $101.48 and its two-hundred day moving average is $91.24. Aflac Incorporated has a 1 year low of $74.89 and a 1 year high of $111.14.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $1.83 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.60 by $0.23. Aflac had a net margin of 28.35% and a return on equity of 16.22%. The firm had revenue of $5.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.10 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.58 EPS. Aflac’s revenue was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Aflac Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 2nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 21st were issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 21st. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.82%. Aflac’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.08%.

Insider Transactions at Aflac

In related news, Director Thomas J. Kenny sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.94, for a total transaction of $197,880.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 18,158 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,796,552.52. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AFL has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Aflac from $84.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. Truist Financial raised their target price on shares of Aflac from $82.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Citigroup boosted their price target on Aflac from $84.00 to $93.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Barclays began coverage on Aflac in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. They issued an “underweight” rating and a $96.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on Aflac from $84.00 to $83.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Friday, June 28th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $92.50.

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.