Catalina Capital Group LLC Acquires 263 Shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL)

Catalina Capital Group LLC grew its holdings in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 6.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,546 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 263 shares during the period. Catalina Capital Group LLC’s holdings in Aflac were worth $470,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Aflac in the 3rd quarter worth $34,000. Raelipskie Partnership purchased a new position in shares of Aflac during the 3rd quarter valued at about $38,000. Covestor Ltd lifted its position 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 buying an additional 107 shares in the last quarter. Kennebec Savings Bank bought a new position in shares of Aflac during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Aflac in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $51,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.44% of the company’s stock.

Aflac Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:AFL 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 company has a market capitalization 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 firm’s 50-day moving average is $105.50 and its 200 day moving average is $106.46.

Aflac Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 19th will be issued a $0.58 dividend. This represents a $2.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.16%. This is an increase from Aflac’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 19th. Aflac’s dividend payout ratio is presently 34.94%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Audrey B. Tillman sold 24,744 shares of Aflac stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.40, for a total transaction 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 $23,018,701.20. This trade represents a 10.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Aflac from $90.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Evercore ISI dropped their target price 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. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Aflac from $96.00 to $98.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on Aflac from $108.00 to $107.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Aflac from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $103.71.

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.