Toroso Investments LLC Has $3.22 Million Position in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL)

Toroso Investments LLC grew its holdings in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 5.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 49,871 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,573 shares during the quarter. Toroso Investments LLC’s holdings in Aflac were worth $3,218,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in AFL. Panagora Asset Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Aflac by 36.2% in the first quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 23,941 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,542,000 after purchasing an additional 6,369 shares during the last quarter. Blair William & Co. IL grew its position in Aflac by 6.8% during the first quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 17,268 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,112,000 after buying an additional 1,102 shares in the last quarter. Aviva PLC grew its position in Aflac by 0.7% during the first quarter. Aviva PLC now owns 210,634 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $13,563,000 after buying an additional 1,503 shares in the last quarter. Dakota Wealth Management acquired a new stake in Aflac during the first quarter worth about $428,000. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in Aflac by 7.3% during the first quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 6,142 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $396,000 after buying an additional 417 shares in the last quarter. 66.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Aflac Stock Performance

NYSE:AFL opened at $77.31 on Friday. Aflac Incorporated has a 1 year low of $56.03 and a 1 year high of $78.43. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $73.78 and a 200-day moving average of $68.99. The company has a current ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 0.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $45.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.93.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 1st. The financial services provider reported $1.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.42 by $0.16. Aflac had a net margin of 24.48% and a return on equity of 16.10%. The company had revenue of $5.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.52 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Aflac Incorporated will post 5.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Aflac Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 23rd were given a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 22nd. Aflac’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.46%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Albert Riggieri sold 7,649 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.09, for a total value of $582,012.41. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 26,210 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,994,318.90. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, SVP Albert Riggieri sold 7,649 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.09, for a total value of $582,012.41. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 26,210 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,994,318.90. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO James Todd Daniels sold 3,355 shares of Aflac stock in a transaction on Monday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.51, for a total transaction of $249,981.05. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 60,274 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,491,015.74. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 30,170 shares of company stock worth $2,286,000 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on AFL shares. 58.com reissued a “reiterates” rating on shares of Aflac in a research report on Friday, June 9th. Morgan Stanley cut shares of Aflac from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $74.00 to $75.00 in a research note on Friday, August 18th. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Aflac from $69.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Aflac from $72.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 2nd. Finally, StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Aflac in a research note on Thursday, August 17th. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $75.82.

Aflac Company Profile

Aflac Incorporated, through its subsidiaries, provides supplemental health and life insurance products. It operates in two segments, Aflac Japan and Aflac U.S. 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.