Fisher Asset Management LLC Sells 1,158 Shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL)

Fisher Asset Management LLC lessened its stake in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 13.9% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 7,197 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,158 shares during the quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Aflac were worth $805,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Y.D. More Investments Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Aflac in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Aflac during the third quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Covestor Ltd lifted its stake in Aflac by 41.8% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 363 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. Kennebec Savings Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac in the 3rd quarter valued at $45,000. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Aflac in the 3rd quarter valued at $51,000. Institutional investors own 67.44% of the company’s stock.

Aflac Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of AFL stock opened at $114.02 on Friday. Aflac Incorporated has a 1-year low of $75.07 and a 1-year high of $115.50. The company has a current ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 0.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The stock has a market cap of $63.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.17, a PEG ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 0.96. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $111.23 and a 200-day moving average of $101.43.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.16 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.69 by $0.47. The business had revenue of $2.95 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.30 billion. Aflac had a net margin of 22.02% and a return on equity of 16.34%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 40.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.84 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Aflac Incorporated will post 7.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Aflac Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.75%. Aflac’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.12%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AFL has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on Aflac from $84.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. TD Cowen began coverage on shares of Aflac in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $102.00 price target on the stock. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Aflac from $91.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Aflac from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, UBS Group upped 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, ten have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Aflac presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $97.93.

Aflac Company 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.