Edge Capital Group LLC Has $725,000 Position in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL)

Edge Capital Group LLC lowered its holdings in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 11.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,013 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 919 shares during the period. Edge Capital Group LLC’s holdings in Aflac were worth $725,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of AFL. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Aflac in the 3rd quarter worth about $34,000. Raelipskie Partnership purchased a new stake in shares of Aflac in the third quarter worth approximately $38,000. Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Aflac by 41.8% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 363 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the period. Kennebec Savings Bank purchased a new position in Aflac during the third quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Aflac in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $51,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.44% of the company’s stock.

Aflac Stock Performance

NYSE:AFL opened at $104.08 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $57.82 billion, a PE ratio of 10.84, a PEG ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 0.99. Aflac Incorporated has a 1 year low of $78.62 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’s fifty day simple moving average is $104.11 and its 200 day simple moving average is $107.43.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $1.56 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%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.88 EPS for the current year.

Aflac Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 19th will be paid a $0.58 dividend. This is an increase from Aflac’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 19th. This represents a $2.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.23%. Aflac’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 24.17%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on AFL shares. Evercore ISI decreased their target price on shares of Aflac from $104.00 to $102.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on Aflac in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $111.00 target price on the stock. Piper Sandler dropped their target price on Aflac from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Barclays reduced their price target on Aflac from $98.00 to $95.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Aflac from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Aflac currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $102.86.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Aflac news, EVP Audrey B. Tillman sold 24,744 shares of the firm’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 value of $2,558,529.60. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 222,618 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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 can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by 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.