J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. Has $1.54 Million Position in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL)

J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. cut its stake in shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 13.1% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 13,809 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 2,089 shares during the quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Aflac were worth $1,544,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in AFL. Y.D. More Investments Ltd acquired a new stake in Aflac during the 2nd quarter valued at $25,000. Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac in the first quarter valued at $34,000. Fairscale Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac in the second quarter valued at $54,000. Cedar Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Aflac in the first quarter valued at about $50,000. Finally, HHM Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in Aflac by 178.6% during the 2nd quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 624 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $56,000 after buying an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.44% of the company’s stock.

Aflac Trading Up 0.0 %

AFL opened at $109.80 on Tuesday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $110.41 and its two-hundred day moving average is $97.16. The firm has a market cap of $62.39 billion, a PE ratio of 12.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.95. Aflac Incorporated has a twelve month low of $75.07 and a twelve month high of $115.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.10 and a current ratio of 0.10.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $1.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 the consensus estimate of $4.10 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.58 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.76 EPS for the current year.

Aflac Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 2nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 21st were issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 21st. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.82%. Aflac’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 22.08%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Aflac in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. They issued an “underweight” rating and a $96.00 price objective for the company. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on Aflac from $114.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Aflac from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Aflac from $91.00 to $98.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 19th. Finally, TD Cowen started coverage on Aflac in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $102.00 price objective for the company. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Aflac presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $97.53.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Aflac news, Director Thomas J. Kenny sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.94, for a total value of $197,880.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 18,158 shares in the company, valued at $1,796,552.52. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

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.