Edmp Inc. Sells 1,802 Shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL)

Edmp Inc. reduced its position in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 3.9% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 44,623 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,802 shares during the quarter. Aflac comprises approximately 4.4% of Edmp Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 4th largest position. Edmp Inc.’s holdings in Aflac were worth $4,616,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of AFL. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 333,083 shares during the period. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Aflac by 79.7% in the 3rd quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 27,354 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,058,000 after purchasing an additional 12,131 shares during the last quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Aflac in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $979,000. FMR LLC raised its holdings in shares of Aflac by 4.0% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,202,104 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $134,395,000 after purchasing an additional 45,745 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fulton Breakefield Broenniman LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Aflac during the 3rd quarter worth $250,000. 67.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Aflac Stock Down 1.0 %

Aflac stock opened at $102.57 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $104.66 and a two-hundred day moving average of $106.96. Aflac Incorporated has a twelve month low of $77.01 and a twelve month high of $115.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $56.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.68, a PEG ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 0.99. 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 (NYSE:AFL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $1.56 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.63 by ($0.07). Aflac had a return on equity of 16.20% and a net margin of 28.76%. As a group, research analysts expect that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Aflac Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 19th will be issued a $0.58 dividend. This is an increase from Aflac’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 19th. This represents a $2.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.26%. Aflac’s payout ratio is presently 24.17%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have weighed in on AFL shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on Aflac from $108.00 to $107.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Aflac from $90.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on Aflac from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Aflac from $103.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Aflac from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $103.21.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Aflac news, EVP Audrey B. Tillman sold 24,744 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, December 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.40, for a total value of $2,558,529.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 222,618 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,018,701.20. This represents a 10.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate 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.