Triasima Portfolio Management inc. Has $4.28 Million Stock Position in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL)

Triasima Portfolio Management inc. raised its holdings in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 3.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 41,366 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,440 shares during the quarter. Triasima Portfolio Management inc.’s holdings in Aflac were worth $4,279,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Raelipskie Partnership acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $38,000. Covestor Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Aflac by 41.8% during the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 363 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares in the last quarter. Kennebec Savings Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $45,000. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $51,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.44% of the company’s stock.

Aflac Trading Down 3.9 %

Shares of AFL opened at $103.08 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $104.87 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $106.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.08 and a current ratio of 0.08. Aflac Incorporated has a 52-week low of $77.01 and a 52-week high of $115.50. The company has a market cap of $57.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.52, a PEG ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.99.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last issued 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 net margin of 22.02% and a return on equity of 16.34%. Analysts predict that Aflac Incorporated will post 7.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Aflac Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 19th will be given a dividend of $0.58 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 19th. This represents a $2.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.25%. This is an increase from Aflac’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Aflac’s payout ratio is presently 30.12%.

Insider Transactions at Aflac

In related news, EVP Audrey B. Tillman sold 24,744 shares of Aflac 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 completion of 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. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on AFL shares. Evercore ISI decreased their price objective on Aflac from $104.00 to $102.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Aflac from $115.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Aflac from $90.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Truist Financial raised their target price on Aflac from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised 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. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $103.71.

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.