<div id="readability-page-1"><p>Blue Trust Inc. lowered its stake in shares of  Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL - Free Report) by 5.2% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 205,962 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 11,337 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc.'s holdings in Aflac were worth $23,006,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.</p><ul><li>4  Stocks Making New Highs Despite Market Weakness</li></ul><p>Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Mid American Wealth Advisory Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of  Aflac during the 2nd quarter worth $26,000.  Chilton Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in  Aflac during the second quarter valued at about $26,000.  Whipplewood Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in  Aflac by 1,526.7% during the second quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 244 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 229 shares during the last quarter.  Hilltop National Bank purchased a new stake in  Aflac during the second quarter valued at about $32,000.  Finally, Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in  Aflac during the second quarter worth about $33,000. 67.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors. </p><h2>Trending Headlines about Aflac</h2><p>Here are the key news stories impacting Aflac this week:</p><ul>   <li><span>Positive Sentiment: </span>TD Cowen issued a bullish note forecasting strong price appreciation for Aflac, which can support upside expectations and attract buyers on weakness. <i></i><span>TD Cowen Forecast</span></li>    <li><span>Positive Sentiment: </span>Coverage highlighting Aflac's multi‑year shareholder gains (a reported ~182% return over five years) reinforces the stock's long-term appeal to income/growth investors. <i></i><span>Five‑Year Performance</span></li>    <li><span>Neutral Sentiment: </span>Aflac's CEO gave human-interest coverage about the history of the company's duck commercials — useful for brand/reputation context but unlikely to move the stock materially. <i></i><span>CEO Interview</span></li>    <li><span>Negative Sentiment: </span>Aflac confirmed a major data breach dating to June that exposed personal and health information for more than 22 million people — a development that raises risks for remediation costs, regulatory scrutiny, class‑action litigation and reputational damage. <i></i><span>Yahoo data breach update</span></li>    <li><span>Negative Sentiment: </span>Multiple outlets report the breach affects ~22–22.65 million individuals and that sensitive health data may have been exposed — corroborating the scale of the incident and increasing the likelihood of follow‑on costs and regulatory attention. <i></i><span>SiliconANGLE breach report</span></li>    <li><span>Negative Sentiment: </span>Regional reporting and business outlets emphasize the potential breadth of impacted customers and the company's ongoing disclosures, which could keep headlines negative and pressure near‑term sentiment until remediation and liability details are clearer. <i></i><span>AJC coverage</span></li> </ul><h2>Aflac Stock Performance</h2><ul><li>Pegasystems flies on AI decision and workflow automation platform</li></ul><p>Shares of NYSE AFL opened at $110.62 on Friday. The stock's 50-day moving average is $109.95 and its 200 day moving average is $107.03. The stock has a market cap of $57.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.44, a P/E/G ratio of 3.20 and a beta of 0.66. Aflac Incorporated has a 1-year low of $96.95 and a 1-year high of $115.83. The company has a current ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 0.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. </p><p>Aflac (NYSE:AFL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 27th. The financial services provider reported $1.07 earnings per share for the quarter. Aflac had a net margin of 23.55% and a return on equity of 14.97%. The business had revenue of $5.91 billion during the quarter.  On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that  Aflac Incorporated will post 6.88 EPS for the current fiscal year. </p><h2>Aflac Increases Dividend</h2><ul><li>Insurance Stocks - Best Insurance Stocks to Buy Now</li></ul><p>The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 2nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.61 per share. This represents a $2.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. This is a positive change from Aflac's previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 18th. Aflac's payout ratio is currently 30.29%. </p><h2>Wall Street Analyst Weigh In</h2><p>Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. Mizuho assumed coverage on Aflac in a report on Tuesday, December 16th. They set an &#34;underperform&#34; rating and a $104.00 price objective on the stock. JPMorgan Chase &amp; Co. upped their price target on Aflac from $100.00 to $101.00 and gave the company a &#34;neutral&#34; rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 5th. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on shares of Aflac from $110.00 to $111.00 and gave the company an &#34;underperform&#34; rating in a research report on Friday, November 7th. Wells Fargo &amp; Company boosted their price objective on shares of Aflac from $107.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an &#34;equal weight&#34; rating in a research note on Friday, November 7th. Finally, Weiss Ratings  reaffirmed a &#34;buy (b+)&#34; rating on shares of Aflac in a report on Monday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and three have issued  a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Aflac currently has a consensus rating of &#34;Hold&#34; and an average price target of $109.83.</p><p><b>Check Out Our Latest Analysis on AFL</b></p><h2>Insider Activity</h2><p>In other news, Director Joseph L. Moskowitz sold 786 shares of Aflac stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.75, for a total value of $89,407.50. Following the sale, the director directly owned 24,829 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,824,298.75. This trade represents a 3.07% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities &amp; Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Audrey B. Tillman sold 15,862 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $112.00, for a total value of $1,776,544.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 230,688 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $25,837,056. This represents a 6.43% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 31,766 shares of company stock valued at $3,549,706. Company insiders own  0.90% of the company's stock. </p><h2>Aflac Profile</h2> (Free Report)<p>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.  </p><p>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.</p><h2>See Also</h2><ul><li>Five stocks we like better than Aflac</li><li>Put $1,000 into this stock by Jan 1 [Not NVDA]</li><li>Turn your &#34;dead money&#34; into $306+ monthly (starting this month)</li><li>Washington prepares for war</li><li>Strange Crystal Metal Outperforms Silicon Up to 100X</li><li>33,000% boom from weird new “AI Fuel?”</li></ul><p><img src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://www.marketbeat.com/scripts/SECFilingChart.ashx/query-UHJlZml4PU5ZU0UmU3ltYm9sPUFGTA?x-oss-process=image/auto-orient,1/interlace,1/resize,w_1440,h_1440/quality,q_95/format,jpg" width="650" height="350" original-src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://www.marketbeat.com/scripts/SECFilingChart.ashx/query-UHJlZml4PU5ZU0UmU3ltYm9sPUFGTA"/></p><p><em>This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.</em></p><h2>Should You Invest $1,000 in Aflac Right Now?</h2><p>Before you consider Aflac, you'll want to hear this.</p><p>MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and Aflac wasn't on the list.</p><p>While Aflac currently has a Hold rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys.</p><p>View The Five Stocks Here</p>                  </div>

<p>Blue Trust Inc. reduced its stake in Aflac Incorporated by 5.2% in the third quarter, selling 11,337 shares and retaining 205,962 shares valued at $23,006,000. The news also highlights Aflac's recent data breach affecting over 22 million individuals, potential regulatory scrutiny, and its stock performance, including a dividend increase and analyst ratings.</p>

Blue Trust Inc. Sells 11,337 Shares of Aflac Incorporated $AFL