Advisors Asset Management Inc. Decreases Position in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL)

Advisors Asset Management Inc. lowered its position in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL - Free Report) by 5.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 84,444 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 4,890 shares during the period. Advisors Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Aflac were worth $8,735,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Aflac during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Aflac during the third quarter worth about $34,000. BankPlus Trust Department acquired a new position in Aflac during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Raelipskie Partnership acquired a new position in Aflac during the third quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Curio Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Aflac in the fourth quarter valued at about $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.44% of the company's stock.

Aflac Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of AFL stock traded down $0.61 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $108.10. 5,333,576 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,996,221. The stock has a market cap of $59.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.26, a PEG ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a quick ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 0.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. Aflac Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $79.31 and a fifty-two week high of $115.50. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $105.95 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $107.63.

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Aflac (NYSE:AFL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $1.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.63 by ($0.07). Aflac had a return on equity of 16.20% and a net margin of 28.76%. Equities analysts expect that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Aflac

In other news, Director Joseph L. Moskowitz sold 1,000 shares of Aflac stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.63, for a total value of $107,630.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 25,393 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,733,048.59. The trade was a 3.79 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Charles D. Lake II sold 29,802 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.29, for a total transaction of $3,197,456.58. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 49,962 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,360,422.98. This trade represents a 37.36 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 55,546 shares of company stock worth $5,863,616. 0.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AFL has been the topic of several research analyst reports. StockNews.com raised Aflac from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on Aflac from $104.00 to $102.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Aflac from $90.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on shares of Aflac from $107.00 to $104.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Aflac from $104.00 to $102.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $103.36.

About Aflac

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.