Blue Trust Inc. Raises Holdings in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL)

Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL - Free Report) by 872.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 187,997 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 168,661 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc.'s holdings in Aflac were worth $19,446,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Aflac in the 3rd quarter valued at about $34,000. Raelipskie Partnership purchased a new position in shares of Aflac in the third quarter worth about $38,000. Covestor Ltd raised its position in shares of Aflac by 41.8% in the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 363 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the period. Kennebec Savings Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Aflac during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Aflac in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $51,000. Institutional investors own 67.44% of the company's stock.

Aflac Price Performance

AFL stock traded up $0.27 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $104.53. The company had a trading volume of 1,579,195 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,796,172. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $104.15 and a 200-day moving average price of $107.30. The company has a market capitalization of $58.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.89, a P/E/G ratio of 3.27 and a beta of 0.99. Aflac Incorporated has a 1 year low of $78.38 and a 1 year high of $115.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.10 and a quick ratio of 0.08.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $1.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.63 by ($0.07). Aflac had a return on equity of 16.20% and a net margin of 28.76%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Aflac Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 19th will be issued a $0.58 dividend. This is a boost from Aflac's previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. This represents a $2.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 19th. Aflac's dividend payout ratio is presently 20.83%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets assumed 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Aflac from $90.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. StockNews.com raised Aflac from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Aflac from $104.00 to $102.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Aflac from $98.00 to $95.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 7th. Two 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's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $102.86.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Audrey B. Tillman sold 24,744 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, December 27th. The shares were 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 owns 222,618 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $23,018,701.20. This represents a 10.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.80% of the company's stock.

Aflac 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.