Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd Has $2.27 Million Holdings in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL)

Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd decreased its position in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 37.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 20,270 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 12,000 shares during the quarter. Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd’s holdings in Aflac were worth $2,266,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of AFL. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in 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 buying an additional 12,131 shares during the last quarter. Czech National Bank lifted its position in shares of Aflac by 6.4% in the second quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 98,535 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $8,800,000 after purchasing an additional 5,912 shares in the last quarter. M&G Plc acquired a new position in Aflac during the second quarter worth $2,535,000. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV grew its position in Aflac by 576.9% in the second quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 8,075 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $721,000 after purchasing an additional 6,882 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers grew its position in Aflac by 161.0% in the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 311,239 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,723,000 after purchasing an additional 191,975 shares in the last quarter. 67.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Aflac Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of AFL stock opened at $114.10 on Thursday. Aflac Incorporated has a 12-month low of $75.07 and a 12-month high of $115.50. The company has a market capitalization of $63.39 billion, a PE ratio of 17.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 0.96. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $110.99 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $101.14. The company has a quick ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 0.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.16 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.69 by $0.47. Aflac had a return on equity of 16.34% and a net margin of 22.02%. The business had revenue of $2.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.30 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.84 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 40.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Aflac Incorporated will post 7.22 earnings per share for the current year.

Aflac Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AFL has been the topic of several analyst reports. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Aflac from $115.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Aflac from $106.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Barclays began coverage on shares of Aflac in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. They issued an “underweight” rating and a $96.00 target price for the company. TD Cowen initiated coverage on shares of Aflac in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. They set a “hold” rating and a $102.00 price target on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Aflac from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $97.93.

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.