Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) Shares Acquired by Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc.

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 0.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 3,190,954 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 17,892 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Aflac were worth $263,254,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Fortitude Family Office LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Aflac in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Aflac in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Arlington Trust Co LLC acquired a new position in shares of Aflac in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Aflac in the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. 67.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Aflac Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:AFL opened at $84.83 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $48.20 billion, a PE ratio of 9.36, a P/E/G ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a current ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 0.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. Aflac Incorporated has a twelve month low of $64.10 and a twelve month high of $86.26. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $83.33 and a 200-day simple moving average of $81.99.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.66 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.58 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $5.44 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.09 billion. Aflac had a net margin of 27.67% and a return on equity of 16.88%. The company’s revenue was up 13.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.55 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Aflac Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 22nd will be issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.36%. This is a boost from Aflac’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 21st. Aflac’s payout ratio is presently 22.08%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on AFL shares. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on shares of Aflac from $90.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, April 5th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of Aflac from $83.00 to $87.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Raymond James lifted their price objective on shares of Aflac from $83.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Aflac from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Aflac from $83.00 to $81.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $82.31.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Arthur Reginald Collins sold 3,000 shares of Aflac stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.73, for a total value of $239,190.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $445,850.16. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, Director Arthur Reginald Collins sold 3,000 shares of Aflac stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.73, for a total value of $239,190.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $445,850.16. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Thomas J. Kenny sold 5,000 shares of Aflac stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.62, for a total transaction of $423,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 17,920 shares in the company, valued at $1,516,390.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 46,493 shares of company stock valued at $3,765,706 in the last ninety days. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.