Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management Reduces Position in Aflac Incorporated $AFL

Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management trimmed its stake in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 18.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 20,299 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 4,506 shares during the period. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management’s holdings in Aflac were worth $2,267,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of AFL. Brighton Jones LLC raised its stake in Aflac by 64.4% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 14,570 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,507,000 after acquiring an additional 5,708 shares during the period. Bison Wealth LLC raised its position in shares of Aflac by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 4,402 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $455,000 after purchasing an additional 183 shares during the period. D.A. Davidson & CO. raised its position in shares of Aflac by 10.8% during the 2nd quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 34,227 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,610,000 after purchasing an additional 3,348 shares during the period. Brookstone Capital Management lifted its stake in shares of Aflac by 7.3% during the 2nd quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 18,273 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,927,000 after buying an additional 1,249 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bleakley Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in Aflac by 1.6% in the 2nd quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 11,330 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,195,000 after buying an additional 177 shares during the period. 67.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have commented on AFL. TD Cowen reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Aflac in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Raymond James Financial reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $119.00 target price (up previously from $110.00) on shares of Aflac in a research note on Tuesday, December 30th. Evercore boosted their price target on Aflac from $110.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 7th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Aflac from $107.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, November 7th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b+)” rating on shares of Aflac in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $110.91.

Insider Buying and Selling at Aflac

In other news, EVP Steven Kent Beaver sold 5,492 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $109.53, for a total transaction of $601,538.76. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 38,368 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,202,447.04. This represents a 12.52% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Aflac Stock Performance

NYSE AFL opened at $114.07 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.11 and a quick ratio of 0.11. Aflac Incorporated has a 1-year low of $96.95 and a 1-year high of $119.32. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $111.29 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $109.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $59.79 billion, a PE ratio of 16.58, a P/E/G ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.67.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $1.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.69 by ($0.12). Aflac had a return on equity of 14.35% and a net margin of 21.24%.The firm had revenue of $4.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.45 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.57 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Aflac Company Profile

Aflac Incorporated (American Family Life Assurance Company of Columbus) is a provider of supplemental insurance products designed to help policyholders manage out-of-pocket health care and living expenses. The company underwrites a range of individual and group policies that typically pay cash benefits directly to insureds when covered events occur, enabling greater financial flexibility for medical treatment, hospital stays, critical illness, and related costs. Aflac’s product mix includes supplemental health insurance, life insurance and other specialty coverages intended to complement primary medical plans.

Founded in the mid-20th century and headquartered in Columbus, Georgia, Aflac distributes its products through a combination of employer-sponsored programs, independent brokers and agents, and direct marketing.