Marshall Wace LLP Buys 194,653 Shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL)

Marshall Wace LLP lifted its position in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL - Free Report) by 203.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 290,420 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 194,653 shares during the quarter. Marshall Wace LLP owned approximately 0.05% of Aflac worth $30,041,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in AFL. Insigneo Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Aflac by 4.6% in the 4th quarter. Insigneo Advisory Services LLC now owns 7,276 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $753,000 after buying an additional 317 shares during the last quarter. Regal Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in Aflac by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Regal Investment Advisors LLC now owns 97,214 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $10,056,000 after acquiring an additional 625 shares during the period. AGP Franklin LLC purchased a new position in Aflac in the fourth quarter valued at about $992,000. Guggenheim Capital LLC grew its position in shares of Aflac by 4.7% during the 4th quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC now owns 86,443 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $8,942,000 after acquiring an additional 3,842 shares during the period. Finally, XTX Topco Ltd increased its stake in shares of Aflac by 1,061.3% during the 4th quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 40,380 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $4,177,000 after purchasing an additional 36,903 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.44% of the company's stock.

Aflac Stock Up 0.5 %

NYSE:AFL traded up $0.55 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $108.98. 549,901 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,988,959. Aflac Incorporated has a 1 year low of $80.59 and a 1 year high of $115.50. The company has a current ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 0.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The business's 50-day moving average price is $106.95 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $107.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $59.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.35, a P/E/G ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 0.81.

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

Insider Transactions at Aflac

In other Aflac news, Director Charles D. Lake II sold 29,802 shares of the business's 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 $5,360,422.98. The trade was a 37.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Joseph L. Moskowitz sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.63, for a total transaction of $107,630.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 25,393 shares in the company, valued at $2,733,048.59. This trade represents a 3.79 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.90% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AFL has been the subject of several analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on shares of Aflac from $107.00 to $104.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Aflac from $104.00 to $102.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on shares of Aflac from $118.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on shares of Aflac in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $111.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Aflac from $105.00 to $100.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $103.93.

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.