Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) Shares Purchased by Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT

Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT boosted its holdings in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 2.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 15,210 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 341 shares during the period. Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT’s holdings in Aflac were worth $1,573,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Aflac in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Raelipskie Partnership acquired a new stake in Aflac in the third quarter worth $38,000. Covestor Ltd lifted its stake in 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 buying an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. Kennebec Savings Bank acquired a new position in shares of Aflac during the third quarter valued at $45,000. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Aflac during the third quarter worth about $51,000. 67.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Aflac Price Performance

NYSE:AFL opened at $102.04 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 0.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $104.11 and its 200 day moving average price is $107.29. Aflac Incorporated has a 52-week low of $78.62 and a 52-week high of $115.50. The firm has a market cap of $56.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.63, a PEG ratio of 3.31 and a beta of 0.99.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $1.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.63 by ($0.07). Aflac had a return on equity of 16.20% and a net margin of 28.76%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Aflac Increases Dividend

The business 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. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 19th. This represents a $2.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.27%. This is a boost from Aflac’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Aflac’s dividend payout ratio is currently 24.17%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently weighed in on AFL. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective 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. Truist Financial lifted their price target on Aflac from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Barclays decreased their price objective on Aflac from $98.00 to $95.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 7th. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on Aflac in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $111.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on Aflac from $107.00 to $104.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Two equities 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 company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Aflac presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $102.86.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Audrey B. Tillman sold 24,744 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.40, for a total transaction of $2,558,529.60. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 222,618 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,018,701.20. The trade was a 10.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

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.