Intech Investment Management LLC Trims Stock Holdings in Aflac Incorporated $AFL

Intech Investment Management LLC lessened its stake in shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 55.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 52,175 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 65,497 shares during the quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Aflac were worth $5,828,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its stake in Aflac by 64.4% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 14,570 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,507,000 after purchasing an additional 5,708 shares in the last quarter. Bison Wealth LLC raised its holdings in shares of Aflac by 4.3% in the 4th quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 4,402 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $455,000 after buying an additional 183 shares during the period. Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Aflac by 6.0% in the 2nd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 2,861 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $302,000 after buying an additional 162 shares during the period. Savvy Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Aflac by 22.6% during the 2nd quarter. Savvy Advisors Inc. now owns 4,560 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $481,000 after acquiring an additional 840 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Strs Ohio boosted its holdings in Aflac by 509.1% during the 2nd quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 143,848 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $15,170,000 after acquiring an additional 120,231 shares during the period. 67.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Aflac news, EVP Steven Kent Beaver sold 7,387 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.58, for a total transaction of $839,015.46. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 40,526 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,602,943.08. This trade represents a 15.42% 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 this link. Insiders have sold 16,331 shares of company stock valued at $1,817,720 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

Aflac Stock Down 1.1%

Aflac stock opened at $112.75 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $58.22 billion, a PE ratio of 16.39, a P/E/G ratio of 3.71 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.11 and a quick ratio of 0.11. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $111.52 and its two-hundred day moving average is $110.03. Aflac Incorporated has a 1-year low of $96.95 and a 1-year high of $119.32.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $1.57 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.69 by ($0.12). Aflac had a net margin of 21.24% and a return on equity of 14.35%. The business had revenue of $4.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.45 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.57 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AFL has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Mizuho set a $107.00 price target on shares of Aflac in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Aflac from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday. Morgan Stanley set a $120.00 target price on shares of Aflac in a report on Monday, December 15th. Evercore raised their price target on shares of Aflac from $110.00 to $111.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Aflac from $101.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $111.73.

About Aflac

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.