Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. Purchases 2,463 Shares of Aflac Incorporated $AFL

Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its position in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 1.3% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 190,808 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,463 shares during the quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Aflac were worth $20,105,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mid American Wealth Advisory Group Inc. bought a new position in Aflac during the second quarter worth about $26,000. Chilton Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Aflac during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Aflac by 1,526.7% in the 2nd quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 244 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 229 shares during the period. AlphaCore Capital LLC purchased a new position in Aflac in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Hilltop National Bank purchased a new position in Aflac in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $32,000. 67.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Aflac Stock Performance

Shares of AFL opened at $113.71 on Friday. Aflac Incorporated has a 12-month low of $96.95 and a 12-month high of $115.43. The company has a current ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 0.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The company has a market cap of $60.82 billion, a PE ratio of 25.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.83. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $108.84 and a 200-day moving average price of $105.69.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last announced its earnings results on Monday, February 27th. The financial services provider reported $1.07 earnings per share for the quarter. Aflac had a net margin of 15.32% and a return on equity of 15.08%. The business had revenue of $5.91 billion for the quarter. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Aflac announced that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Tuesday, August 12th that permits the company to buyback 100,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Aflac Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.58 per share. This represents a $2.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 19th. Aflac’s payout ratio is currently 30.29%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently commented on AFL. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on Aflac from $108.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 9th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Aflac in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Evercore ISI set a $110.00 target price on Aflac and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 9th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Aflac from $108.00 to $113.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 18th. Finally, Barclays restated an “underweight” rating and issued a $104.00 price objective (up from $102.00) on shares of Aflac in a research report on Wednesday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $110.20.

Aflac Company 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.