Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund Sells 266,771 Shares of Aflac Incorporated $AFL

Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund lowered its position in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 21.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 957,863 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 266,771 shares during the quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund’s holdings in Aflac were worth $105,624,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Quarry LP bought a new position in shares of Aflac in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Navalign LLC bought a new position in shares of Aflac in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Aflac in the second quarter worth $33,000. Activest Wealth Management increased its holdings in shares of Aflac by 95.6% in the fourth quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 311 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 152 shares during the period. Finally, Park Square Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Aflac by 80.6% in the fourth quarter. Park Square Financial Group LLC now owns 354 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 158 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 67.44% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Aflac

Here are the key news stories impacting Aflac this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Aflac continues to be viewed as a dependable income stock, supported by 44 consecutive years of dividend growth and a recently paid quarterly dividend of $0.61 per share. The “Duck Stock” Keeps Quietly Making Money for Shareholders
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts remain constructive enough to keep Aflac on the radar as a stable insurance name, with recent commentary highlighting reliable returns from dividends, buybacks, and supplemental insurance growth. 3 Insurance Stocks Hitting 52-Week Highs With More Room to Run
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent market coverage describes Aflac as a steady, low-volatility insurer, but also suggests the stock’s quality may already be fairly priced in, limiting near-term upside. 4 Stocks Making New Highs Despite Market Weakness
• Negative Sentiment: Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan has continued trimming its Aflac stake through a series of insider sales in June, which may create some investor concern even though the trades were disclosed under a 10b5-1 plan. SEC Filing

Aflac Stock Performance

NYSE AFL opened at $117.56 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $114.68 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $111.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 0.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. Aflac Incorporated has a 12-month low of $96.95 and a 12-month high of $119.81. The firm has a market cap of $59.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.34, a PEG ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 0.61.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The financial services provider reported $1.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.80 by ($0.05). Aflac had a net margin of 25.60% and a return on equity of 13.88%. The business had revenue of $4.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.20 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.66 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 27.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Aflac Incorporated will post 7.08 EPS for the current year.

Aflac Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 20th were given a dividend of $0.61 per share. This represents a $2.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 20th. Aflac’s dividend payout ratio is presently 27.70%.

Insider Transactions at Aflac

In other Aflac news, major shareholder Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 26,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.00, for a total transaction of $3,100,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 51,116,235 shares in the company, valued at $5,980,599,495. This represents a 0.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 936,356 shares of company stock worth $107,019,534 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Aflac from $113.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, April 10th. Mizuho set a $104.00 price target on shares of Aflac in a report on Monday, May 4th. Barclays set a $99.00 price target on shares of Aflac and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Aflac from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut Aflac from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a research note on Friday, May 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Aflac has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $112.27.

Aflac Company Profile

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.