Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. Boosts Stock Position in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL)

Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. boosted its stake in shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 8.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 5,090 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 401 shares during the quarter. Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co.’s holdings in Aflac were worth $527,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Aflac in the third quarter worth approximately $34,000. Raelipskie Partnership bought a new position in Aflac during the 3rd quarter worth about $38,000. Covestor Ltd increased its holdings in Aflac by 41.8% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 363 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 107 shares during the period. Kennebec Savings Bank purchased a new position in shares of Aflac in the 3rd quarter valued at $45,000. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Aflac in the 3rd quarter worth $51,000. 67.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Aflac

In related news, EVP Audrey B. Tillman sold 24,744 shares of the company’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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 222,618 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,018,701.20. This represents a 10.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Aflac Stock Down 0.7 %

AFL stock opened at $106.65 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $59.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.06, a PEG ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.99. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $105.50 and a two-hundred day moving average of $106.55. Aflac Incorporated has a 12 month low of $75.44 and a 12 month high of $115.50. 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 Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 19th will be paid a dividend of $0.58 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 19th. This represents a $2.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.18%. This is a positive change from Aflac’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Aflac’s payout ratio is 30.12%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AFL has been the topic of several analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their target price on Aflac from $108.00 to $107.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 10th. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on Aflac in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $111.00 target price on the stock. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Aflac from $96.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Truist Financial raised their price target on shares of Aflac from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Aflac from $90.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price 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.