Hamilton Capital LLC Takes Position in Aflac Incorporated $AFL

Hamilton Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 4,336 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $508,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. DNB Asset Management AS increased its position in shares of Aflac by 51.3% in the 4th quarter. DNB Asset Management AS now owns 168,003 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $18,526,000 after buying an additional 56,975 shares in the last quarter. Employees Retirement System of Texas acquired a new stake in Aflac during the 4th quarter worth $3,743,000. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. bought a new position in Aflac during the second quarter worth about $6,630,000. Atlas Wealth LLC bought a new position in Aflac during the first quarter worth about $1,802,000. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake in Aflac by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,072,717 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $118,256,000 after acquiring an additional 46,262 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 67.44% of the company’s stock.

Aflac Price Performance

AFL stock opened at $116.45 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $121.60 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $116.21. Aflac Incorporated has a 1 year low of $104.66 and a 1 year high of $130.22. The stock has a market cap of $58.38 billion, a PE ratio of 12.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a current ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 0.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.75 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.76 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $4.22 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.11 billion. Aflac had a net margin of 26.91% and a return on equity of 13.27%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.78 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Aflac Incorporated will post 7.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Aflac Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 19th will be given a $0.61 dividend. This represents a $2.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 19th. Aflac’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.15%.

Insider Activity at Aflac

In other news, major shareholder Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 12,700 shares of Aflac stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.49, for a total value of $1,479,423.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 50,765,590 shares in the company, valued at $5,913,683,579.10. This trade represents a 0.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Joseph L. Moskowitz sold 600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.10, for a total transaction of $74,460.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 32,710 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,059,311. This represents a 1.80% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 502,125 shares of company stock worth $58,965,806 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AFL has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company set a $122.00 price target on Aflac and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. Mizuho set a $116.00 price objective on Aflac in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $138.00 target price (up from $130.00) on shares of Aflac in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on Aflac from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, TD Cowen reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $110.00 price target (up from $101.00) on shares of Aflac in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $116.62.

Aflac Company Profile

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.

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.