Nicholson Wealth Management Group LLC Boosts Holdings in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL)

Nicholson Wealth Management Group LLC boosted its position in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 31.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 13,830 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,274 shares during the quarter. Nicholson Wealth Management Group LLC’s holdings in Aflac were worth $1,431,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Aflac in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Raelipskie Partnership bought a new position in shares of Aflac in the 3rd quarter worth $38,000. Covestor Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Aflac by 41.8% in 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 bought a new position in shares of Aflac in the 3rd quarter worth $45,000. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Aflac in the 3rd quarter worth $51,000. 67.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Aflac news, EVP Audrey B. Tillman sold 24,744 shares of the firm’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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 222,618 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,018,701.20. This trade represents a 10.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

Aflac Price Performance

AFL stock opened at $104.31 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $57.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.87, a P/E/G ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.99. Aflac Incorporated has a 52 week low of $78.60 and a 52 week high of $115.50. 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 firm’s fifty day moving average is $104.16 and its 200 day moving average is $107.26.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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%. Research analysts predict that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Aflac Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Shareholders 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 2.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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 20.83%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on AFL shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on shares of Aflac from $107.00 to $104.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Piper Sandler decreased their price target on shares of Aflac from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 7th. StockNews.com raised shares of Aflac from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Aflac from $90.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Barclays decreased 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 research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $102.86.

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.