Mizuho Securities USA LLC Acquires 14,703 Shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL)

Mizuho Securities USA LLC increased its holdings in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 45.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 47,386 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 14,703 shares during the quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC’s holdings in Aflac were worth $4,902,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Aflac in the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. BankPlus Trust Department purchased a new stake in Aflac in the fourth quarter worth approximately $34,000. Raelipskie Partnership bought a new stake in Aflac in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $38,000. Curio Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Aflac during the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new position in shares of Aflac during the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.44% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Audrey B. Tillman sold 24,744 shares of Aflac stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 222,618 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,018,701.20. The trade was a 10.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Joseph L. Moskowitz sold 1,000 shares of Aflac stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.63, for a total value of $107,630.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 25,393 shares in the company, valued at $2,733,048.59. This trade represents a 3.79 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 55,546 shares of company stock worth $5,863,616 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Aflac Price Performance

Shares of Aflac stock opened at $108.10 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $105.95 and its 200-day simple moving average is $107.63. Aflac Incorporated has a 52 week low of $79.31 and a 52 week high of $115.50. The company has a market capitalization of $59.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.26, a PEG ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a quick ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 0.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $1.56 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.63 by ($0.07). Aflac had a net margin of 28.76% and a return on equity of 16.20%. As a group, analysts expect that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently commented on AFL shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Aflac from $90.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Aflac from $98.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on shares of Aflac in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $111.00 price objective on the stock. Evercore ISI decreased their price target on shares of Aflac from $104.00 to $102.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Aflac from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $103.36.

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.