Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) Shares Purchased by Liberty Capital Management Inc.

Liberty Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 0.2% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 81,403 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 182 shares during the period. Aflac makes up about 1.9% of Liberty Capital Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest position. Liberty Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Aflac were worth $8,420,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of AFL. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Aflac during the third quarter worth approximately $34,000. Raelipskie Partnership purchased a new stake in shares of Aflac during the 3rd quarter valued at $38,000. Covestor Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Aflac by 41.8% during the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 363 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. Kennebec Savings Bank purchased a new position in shares of Aflac in the 3rd quarter worth $45,000. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Aflac in the third quarter valued at $51,000. 67.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Aflac Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of AFL opened at $103.62 on Monday. Aflac Incorporated has a one year low of $77.01 and a one year high of $115.50. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $104.66 and a 200 day moving average price of $106.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.08 and a current ratio of 0.10. The company has a market capitalization of $57.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.79, a P/E/G ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 0.99.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last released its earnings results 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%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Aflac Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.58 per share. This is a positive change from Aflac’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. This represents a $2.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.24%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 19th. Aflac’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 20.83%.

Insider Transactions at Aflac

In other news, EVP Audrey B. Tillman sold 24,744 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 222,618 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,018,701.20. The trade was a 10.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AFL has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Aflac from $103.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Truist Financial increased their target price on shares of Aflac from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. StockNews.com cut shares of Aflac from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their target price on shares of Aflac from $108.00 to $107.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets started coverage on shares of Aflac in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They set a “market perform” rating and a $111.00 target price on the stock. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $103.21.

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.