Csenge Advisory Group Has $1.52 Million Stock Holdings in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL)

Csenge Advisory Group lessened its holdings in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 3.8% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 14,656 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 573 shares during the quarter. Csenge Advisory Group’s holdings in Aflac were worth $1,516,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of AFL. AMF Tjanstepension AB boosted its holdings in shares of Aflac by 13.3% in the 3rd quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 252,137 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $28,206,000 after purchasing an additional 29,602 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Aflac by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 55,155 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,166,000 after purchasing an additional 1,271 shares in the last quarter. Stratos Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac during the 3rd quarter valued at $228,000. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Aflac by 63.7% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 19,336 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,162,000 after acquiring an additional 7,526 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Aflac by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 22,111 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,472,000 after acquiring an additional 311 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.44% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Aflac

In related news, EVP Audrey B. Tillman sold 24,744 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 222,618 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,018,701.20. This represents a 10.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

Aflac Stock Performance

AFL stock opened at $103.46 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $104.18 and a 200-day moving average price of $107.17. Aflac Incorporated has a 1-year low of $78.38 and a 1-year high of $115.50. The company has a current ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 0.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The firm has a market cap of $57.48 billion, a PE ratio of 10.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 0.99.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $1.56 earnings per share 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, equities research analysts expect that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.95 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. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 19th will be given a $0.58 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 19th. This is a positive change from Aflac’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. This represents a $2.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.24%. Aflac’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.83%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AFL has been the topic of several recent research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on Aflac from $107.00 to $104.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Truist Financial raised their price objective on Aflac from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on Aflac in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They set a “market perform” rating and a $111.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays cut their price objective on Aflac from $98.00 to $95.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 7th. 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. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $103.00.

About Aflac

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.