Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. Has $2.51 Million Position in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL)

Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. boosted its stake in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL - Free Report) by 52.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 24,253 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 8,328 shares during the period. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc.'s holdings in Aflac were worth $2,509,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its position in Aflac by 10,878.5% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 559,903 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $62,597,000 after acquiring an additional 554,803 shares during the period. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund grew its position in shares of Aflac by 471.4% during the 3rd quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 600,000 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $67,080,000 after purchasing an additional 495,000 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in shares of Aflac by 670.9% during the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 556,576 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $57,572,000 after purchasing an additional 484,378 shares during the period. Truist Financial Corp increased its holdings in shares of Aflac by 26.6% during the second quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 1,929,662 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $172,338,000 after purchasing an additional 405,847 shares during the period. Finally, World Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac in the third quarter valued at approximately $42,290,000. 67.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Aflac Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AFL traded up $1.15 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $104.80. 2,004,767 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,685,607. Aflac Incorporated has a 1-year low of $75.07 and a 1-year high of $115.50. The company has a market capitalization of $58.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a quick ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 0.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The business's 50 day moving average is $106.55 and its 200-day moving average is $105.12.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.69 by $0.47. Aflac had a return on equity of 16.34% and a net margin of 22.02%. The business had revenue of $2.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.30 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.84 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 40.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Aflac Incorporated will post 7.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Aflac Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 19th will be issued a $0.58 dividend. This represents a $2.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.21%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 19th. This is a positive change from Aflac's previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Aflac's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 34.94%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Aflac news, EVP Audrey B. Tillman sold 24,744 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the executive vice president now 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AFL has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Barclays increased their price target on Aflac from $96.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Piper Sandler raised their price target on Aflac from $114.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on Aflac from $108.00 to $107.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Aflac from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Aflac from $90.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $102.07.

Aflac Company 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.