Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Sells 204,429 Shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL)

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP decreased its holdings in shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL - Free Report) by 5.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 3,883,372 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 204,429 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned 0.70% of Aflac worth $401,686,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Forum Financial Management LP increased its stake in Aflac by 5.8% during the 4th quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 8,831 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $913,000 after purchasing an additional 487 shares in the last quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Aflac by 32.0% in the 4th quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 7,390 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $764,000 after buying an additional 1,793 shares during the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board grew its holdings in shares of Aflac by 339.7% in the fourth quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 303,454 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $31,389,000 after acquiring an additional 234,439 shares during the period. Capital Square LLC purchased a new stake in Aflac during the fourth quarter valued at $205,000. Finally, Zacks Investment Management boosted its position in Aflac by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Zacks Investment Management now owns 19,446 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,012,000 after purchasing an additional 631 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 67.44% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on AFL shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Aflac from $94.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Aflac from $105.00 to $100.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 10th. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Aflac from $109.00 to $114.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Barclays decreased their target price on Aflac from $98.00 to $95.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price objective 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. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $103.93.

Insider Activity

In other Aflac news, Director Charles D. Lake II sold 29,802 shares of Aflac stock in a transaction 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 owns 49,962 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,360,422.98. The trade was a 37.36 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Joseph L. Moskowitz sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $107.63, for a total transaction of $107,630.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 25,393 shares of the company's stock, 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. Company insiders own 0.90% of the company's stock.

Aflac Price Performance

Aflac stock traded up $0.34 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $108.65. 1,552,313 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,121,829. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $106.84 and its 200-day simple moving average is $107.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.08 and a current ratio of 0.10. The company has a market capitalization of $59.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.32, a P/E/G ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 0.81. Aflac Incorporated has a 1 year low of $80.59 and a 1 year high of $115.50.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $1.56 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%. On average, analysts anticipate that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.88 EPS for the current year.

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.