Tanaka Capital Management Inc. Sells 950 Shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL)

Tanaka Capital Management Inc. cut its position in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 23,614 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 950 shares during the quarter. Aflac comprises 6.1% of Tanaka Capital Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 7th biggest holding. Tanaka Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Aflac were worth $2,640,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in AFL. Y.D. More Investments Ltd acquired a new stake in Aflac in the second quarter valued at about $25,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $34,000. 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 valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. Kennebec Savings Bank bought a new stake in shares of Aflac during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Aflac during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $51,000. 67.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Aflac Trading Down 0.4 %

NYSE:AFL opened at $107.31 on Monday. Aflac Incorporated has a 52 week low of $75.07 and a 52 week high of $115.50. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $111.05 and its 200-day moving average is $102.35. The firm has a market cap of $59.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.16, a P/E/G ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.97. 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 (NYSE:AFL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.16 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.69 by $0.47. Aflac had a net margin of 22.02% and a return on equity of 16.34%. The business had revenue of $2.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.30 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.84 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 40.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Aflac Incorporated will post 7.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Aflac Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 19th will be paid a dividend of $0.58 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 19th. This represents a $2.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.16%. This is a boost from Aflac’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Aflac’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.12%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of Aflac from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Piper Sandler upped their target price on Aflac from $114.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Aflac from $91.00 to $98.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 19th. TD Cowen began coverage on Aflac in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. They set a “hold” rating and a $102.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on shares of Aflac from $104.00 to $102.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $98.73.

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.