Princeton Global Asset Management LLC Grows Stock Position in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL)

Princeton Global Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 10.7% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 1,140 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 110 shares during the period. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Aflac were worth $118,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Sanctuary Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac during the second quarter valued at about $3,099,000. AMF Tjanstepension AB grew its stake in Aflac by 13.3% during the 3rd quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 252,137 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $28,206,000 after purchasing an additional 29,602 shares in the last quarter. Czech National Bank increased its holdings in Aflac by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 102,674 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $11,479,000 after purchasing an additional 4,139 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Aflac by 26.9% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 11,843 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,324,000 after purchasing an additional 2,508 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Foster Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Aflac during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $206,000. 67.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Audrey B. Tillman sold 24,744 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 222,618 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,018,701.20. This represents a 10.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently issued reports on AFL. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on shares of Aflac in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $111.00 price target on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Aflac from $90.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. TD Cowen started coverage on Aflac in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $102.00 price target for the company. Evercore ISI cut their price objective on Aflac from $104.00 to $102.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their target price on Aflac from $115.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Aflac has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $103.71.

Aflac Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AFL opened at $106.65 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $105.50 and its two-hundred day moving average is $106.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $59.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.06, a PEG ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.99. 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 52 week low of $75.44 and a 52 week high of $115.50.

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 dividend of $0.58 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 19th. This represents a $2.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.18%. This is an increase from Aflac’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Aflac’s payout ratio is presently 30.12%.

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.