Mediolanum International Funds Ltd Purchases Shares of 11,096 Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL)

Mediolanum International Funds Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 11,096 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,140,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new position in Aflac in the 4th quarter worth $745,000. Lewis Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Aflac by 8.8% in the 4th quarter. Lewis Asset Management LLC now owns 3,556 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $368,000 after acquiring an additional 288 shares during the last quarter. Invesco LLC raised its stake in Aflac by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Invesco LLC now owns 27,658 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,861,000 after acquiring an additional 674 shares during the last quarter. Asset Dedication LLC grew its position in Aflac by 107.4% during the 4th quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 1,041 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $108,000 after purchasing an additional 539 shares during the period. Finally, Buffington Mohr McNeal grew its position in Aflac by 21.5% during the 4th quarter. Buffington Mohr McNeal now owns 3,166 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $327,000 after purchasing an additional 560 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.44% of the company’s stock.

Aflac Trading Down 0.9 %

AFL stock opened at $107.31 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 0.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. Aflac Incorporated has a 12-month low of $75.07 and a 12-month high of $115.50. The stock has a market cap of $59.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.16, a PEG ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 1.00. The business’s 50-day moving average is $105.50 and its 200 day moving average is $106.46.

Aflac Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 19th will be paid a $0.58 dividend. This represents a $2.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.16%. This is a positive change from Aflac’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 19th. Aflac’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 34.94%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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 shares were sold at an average price of $103.40, for a total value 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 $23,018,701.20. This trade represents a 10.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AFL has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Aflac from $103.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on Aflac from $108.00 to $107.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Aflac from $90.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Barclays raised their target price on Aflac from $96.00 to $98.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Bank of America raised their target price on Aflac from $115.00 to $124.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Aflac has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price 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.