Diversify Advisory Services LLC Invests $920,000 in Aflac Incorporated $AFL

Diversify Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 7,268 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $920,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Aflac during the first quarter worth $25,000. Groupe la Francaise acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac in the 1st quarter worth $25,000. Quarry LP purchased a new position in Aflac during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Nalls Sherbakoff Group LLC purchased a new position in Aflac during the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Evergreen Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Aflac during the 1st quarter valued at about $29,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.44% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. TD Cowen reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $110.00 price target (up from $101.00) on shares of Aflac in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Aflac from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Aflac from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $122.00 price objective on shares of Aflac and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Aflac from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $116.62.

Insider Activity

In other news, major shareholder Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 63,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.12, for a total value of $7,441,560.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 51,169,435 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,044,133,662.20. The trade was a 0.12% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 507,333 shares of company stock valued at $59,450,256. Insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Aflac Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AFL opened at $116.48 on Thursday. Aflac Incorporated has a twelve month low of $104.66 and a twelve month high of $130.22. The company has a current ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 0.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The company has a market cap of $58.40 billion, a PE ratio of 12.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 0.60. The company’s 50 day moving average is $121.59 and its 200 day moving average is $116.09.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.75 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.76 by ($0.01). Aflac had a net margin of 26.91% and a return on equity of 13.27%. The business had revenue of $4.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.11 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.78 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Aflac Incorporated will post 7.04 EPS for the current year.

Aflac Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 19th will be paid a dividend of $0.61 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 19th. This represents a $2.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Aflac’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.15%.

Aflac 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.