Invesco LLC Increases Stock Position in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL)

Invesco LLC raised its holdings in shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 2.1% during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 25,434 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 516 shares during the quarter. Aflac comprises about 0.9% of Invesco LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest holding. Invesco LLC’s holdings in Aflac were worth $2,272,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Norges Bank bought a new position in Aflac in the 4th quarter valued at $197,820,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC boosted its position in shares of Aflac by 7,001.0% during the 2nd quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 667,706 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $596,000 after acquiring an additional 658,303 shares during the last quarter. Swedbank AB bought a new position in shares of Aflac in the first quarter worth approximately $27,588,000. Schroder Investment Management Group lifted its position in Aflac by 196.5% during the fourth quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 484,176 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $39,945,000 after purchasing an additional 320,867 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers increased its holdings in shares of Aflac by 161.0% in the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 311,239 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,723,000 after buying an additional 191,975 shares during the last quarter. 67.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Aflac Price Performance

AFL stock opened at $109.39 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $99.53 and a 200 day moving average of $90.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.10 and a quick ratio of 0.10. The company has a market cap of $61.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.07, a PEG ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.95. Aflac Incorporated has a 1 year low of $74.89 and a 1 year high of $111.14.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $1.83 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.60 by $0.23. Aflac had a return on equity of 16.22% and a net margin of 28.35%. The company had revenue of $5.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.10 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.58 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.75 EPS for the current year.

Aflac Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 2nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 21st were given a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.83%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 21st. Aflac’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.08%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on AFL shares. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on Aflac from $84.00 to $83.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, June 28th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Aflac from $81.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Aflac from $80.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Aflac from $84.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Aflac from $84.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $92.50.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Thomas J. Kenny sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.94, for a total transaction of $197,880.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 18,158 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,796,552.52. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.90% of the stock is owned by company 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.