Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) Shares Bought by Guinness Asset Management LTD

Guinness Asset Management LTD boosted its stake in shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL - Free Report) by 5.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,395,045 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 118,720 shares during the quarter. Aflac makes up 4.7% of Guinness Asset Management LTD's investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest holding. Guinness Asset Management LTD owned approximately 0.43% of Aflac worth $247,682,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Spinnaker Trust increased its holdings in shares of Aflac by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. Spinnaker Trust now owns 3,620 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $405,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Secure Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Aflac by 1.0% in the third quarter. Secure Asset Management LLC now owns 9,783 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,094,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Ascent Group LLC raised its holdings in Aflac by 0.6% during the second quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 17,231 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,539,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares in the last quarter. Ieq Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Aflac by 0.5% during the 2nd quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 21,775 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,945,000 after buying an additional 101 shares during the last quarter. Finally, New Century Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Aflac by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. New Century Financial Group LLC now owns 4,198 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $469,000 after buying an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.44% of the company's stock.

Aflac Stock Performance

Aflac stock traded up $0.50 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $106.43. 2,080,419 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,698,974. Aflac Incorporated has a 52-week low of $75.07 and a 52-week high of $115.50. The stock has a market cap of $59.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.03, a P/E/G ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.08 and a current ratio of 0.08. The firm's 50 day moving average is $106.41 and its 200 day moving average is $105.47.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.69 by $0.47. Aflac had a net margin of 22.02% and a return on equity of 16.34%. The firm had revenue of $2.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.30 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.84 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 40.4% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Aflac Incorporated will post 7.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Aflac Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 19th will be paid a $0.58 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 19th. This is an increase from Aflac's previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. This represents a $2.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.18%. Aflac's payout ratio is 30.12%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently commented on AFL. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target 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. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Aflac from $103.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. TD Cowen initiated coverage on Aflac in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $102.00 target price for the company. Piper Sandler raised their price target on Aflac from $114.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their price objective on Aflac from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $102.07.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Audrey B. Tillman sold 24,744 shares of Aflac stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.40, for a total transaction 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. This trade represents a 10.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.