Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC Sells 60,205 Shares of Aflac Incorporated $AFL

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC cut its position in shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 19.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 252,663 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 60,205 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Aflac were worth $28,288,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC grew its stake in shares of Aflac by 64.4% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 14,570 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,507,000 after buying an additional 5,708 shares during the last quarter. Bison Wealth LLC grew its position in Aflac by 4.3% in the 4th quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 4,402 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $455,000 after acquiring an additional 183 shares during the last quarter. Magnetar Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Aflac in the second quarter worth $335,000. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in shares of Aflac by 4.6% during the second quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 528,120 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $55,696,000 after purchasing an additional 23,141 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AlphaCore Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of Aflac by 108.5% during the second quarter. AlphaCore Capital LLC now owns 517 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $55,000 after purchasing an additional 269 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 67.44% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, major shareholder Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 16,800 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.47, for a total value of $1,788,696.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 52,061,800 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,543,019,846. The trade was a 0.03% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Charles D. Lake II sold 15,590 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $109.93, for a total value of $1,713,808.70. Following the sale, the director owned 62,237 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,841,713.41. This trade represents a 20.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 205,877 shares of company stock valued at $22,568,556. 0.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. Barclays set a $101.00 price target on shares of Aflac and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. TD Cowen reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Aflac in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b+)” rating on shares of Aflac in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. Morgan Stanley set a $120.00 price target on shares of Aflac in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Aflac from $109.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $111.73.

Aflac Stock Down 0.5%

NYSE:AFL opened at $106.16 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.11 and a quick ratio of 0.11. The firm has a market cap of $54.69 billion, a PE ratio of 15.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.50 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a 50-day moving average of $111.28 and a 200 day moving average of $110.37. Aflac Incorporated has a 1-year low of $96.95 and a 1-year high of $119.32.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $1.57 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.69 by ($0.12). Aflac had a net margin of 21.24% and a return on equity of 14.35%. The business had revenue of $4.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.45 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.57 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Aflac Profile

Aflac Incorporated (American Family Life Assurance Company of Columbus) is a provider of supplemental insurance products designed to help policyholders manage out-of-pocket health care and living expenses. The company underwrites a range of individual and group policies that typically pay cash benefits directly to insureds when covered events occur, enabling greater financial flexibility for medical treatment, hospital stays, critical illness, and related costs. Aflac’s product mix includes supplemental health insurance, life insurance and other specialty coverages intended to complement primary medical plans.

Founded in the mid-20th century and headquartered in Columbus, Georgia, Aflac distributes its products through a combination of employer-sponsored programs, independent brokers and agents, and direct marketing.