Keel Point LLC Increases Stake in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL)

Keel Point LLC boosted its position in shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 4.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 4,959 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 220 shares during the quarter. Keel Point LLC’s holdings in Aflac were worth $409,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Fortitude Family Office LLC purchased a new stake in Aflac during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. CoreFirst Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in Aflac during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Studio Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Aflac during the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC bought a new position in Aflac during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Impact Partnership Wealth LLC lifted its stake in Aflac by 471.4% during the 3rd quarter. Impact Partnership Wealth LLC now owns 400 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 330 shares during the period. 67.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Aflac Price Performance

NYSE AFL opened at $80.27 on Tuesday. Aflac Incorporated has a 12 month low of $64.10 and a 12 month high of $86.26. The stock has a market cap of $46.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.36, a PEG ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 0.91. The company’s 50 day moving average is $81.96 and its two-hundred day moving average is $81.44. The company has a current ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 0.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The financial services provider reported $1.25 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.47 by ($0.22). Aflac had a return on equity of 17.59% and a net margin of 24.92%. The firm had revenue of $3.78 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.44 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.29 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Aflac news, Director Thomas J. Kenny sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.62, for a total transaction of $423,100.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 17,920 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,516,390.40. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Aflac news, SVP Albert Riggieri sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.34, for a total transaction of $666,720.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 32,825 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,735,635.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Thomas J. Kenny sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.62, for a total transaction of $423,100.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 17,920 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,516,390.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 46,493 shares of company stock worth $3,765,706. Company insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have issued reports on AFL shares. Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of Aflac from $90.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. StockNews.com cut shares of Aflac from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Aflac from $80.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of Aflac from $61.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 9th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of Aflac from $83.00 to $87.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $82.15.

Aflac Profile

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.