QRG Capital Management Inc. Grows Position in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL)

QRG Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 667,842 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 19,137 shares during the period. Aflac accounts for about 0.8% of QRG Capital Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 18th biggest position. QRG Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Aflac were worth $74,665,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Y.D. More Investments Ltd purchased a new position in Aflac in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Cedar Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Aflac in the first quarter valued at $50,000. Fairscale Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Aflac during the 2nd quarter valued at $54,000. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Aflac by 116.7% during the 3rd quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 479 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $54,000 after purchasing an additional 258 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HHM Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Aflac by 178.6% in the 2nd quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 624 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $56,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 67.44% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on AFL. Piper Sandler upped their price target on Aflac from $114.00 to $122.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of Aflac from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Aflac from $90.00 to $106.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Aflac in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. They issued an “underweight” rating and a $96.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Aflac from $91.00 to $98.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 19th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $97.87.

Aflac Price Performance

Shares of Aflac stock opened at $104.85 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $58.72 billion, a PE ratio of 15.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a current ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 0.10 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 business’s 50-day moving average price is $110.52 and its 200-day moving average price is $97.93.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.16 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.69 by $0.47. Aflac had a net margin of 22.02% and a return on equity of 16.34%. The firm had revenue of $2.95 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.30 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.84 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 40.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Aflac Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.91%. Aflac’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.12%.

Insider Transactions at Aflac

In related news, Director Thomas J. Kenny sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.94, for a total transaction of $197,880.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 18,158 shares in the company, valued at $1,796,552.52. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

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.