CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co Decreases Holdings in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL)

CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co trimmed its holdings in shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL - Free Report) by 0.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,002,048 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 4,650 shares during the quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co owned about 0.18% of Aflac worth $103,619,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in shares of Aflac by 75.2% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 776,131 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $88,533,000 after acquiring an additional 333,083 shares in the last quarter. Roxbury Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Aflac in the 4th quarter valued at $948,000. Willis Investment Counsel raised its holdings in shares of Aflac by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Willis Investment Counsel now owns 273,466 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $28,287,000 after buying an additional 3,357 shares in the last quarter. Board of the Pension Protection Fund acquired a new stake in Aflac in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,014,000. Finally, Czech National Bank grew its position in Aflac by 5.6% in the fourth quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 108,405 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $11,213,000 after acquiring an additional 5,731 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.44% of the company's stock.

Aflac Stock Up 2.6 %

Shares of AFL traded up $2.73 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $107.70. The stock had a trading volume of 385,906 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,116,925. The company has a market capitalization of $58.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.22, a P/E/G ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 0.81. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $106.76 and a 200 day simple moving average of $107.16. The company has a current ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 0.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. Aflac Incorporated has a 12 month low of $80.59 and a 12 month high of $115.50.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $1.56 earnings per share 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 research analysts predict that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of Aflac in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $111.00 price target on the stock. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Aflac from $105.00 to $100.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Barclays cut their price target on Aflac from $98.00 to $95.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on shares of Aflac from $107.00 to $104.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Aflac from $104.00 to $102.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Two 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's stock. According to MarketBeat, Aflac presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $103.93.

Insider Activity at Aflac

In other news, Director Joseph L. Moskowitz sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $107.63, for a total value of $107,630.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 25,393 shares in the company, valued at $2,733,048.59. This represents a 3.79 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Charles D. Lake II sold 29,802 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the director now owns 49,962 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,360,422.98. This trade represents a 37.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.