Columbus Macro LLC Has $7.46 Million Holdings in Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL)

Columbus Macro LLC increased its position in shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 392.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 72,083 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 57,450 shares during the period. Aflac comprises about 1.0% of Columbus Macro LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest position. Columbus Macro LLC’s holdings in Aflac were worth $7,456,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in AFL. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Aflac by 10,878.5% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 559,903 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $62,597,000 after acquiring an additional 554,803 shares during the period. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund lifted its position in shares of Aflac by 471.4% in the 3rd quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 600,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $67,080,000 after purchasing an additional 495,000 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its stake in Aflac by 670.9% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 556,576 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $57,572,000 after purchasing an additional 484,378 shares in the last quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Aflac during the third quarter valued at $42,290,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in Aflac by 75.2% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 776,131 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $88,533,000 after buying an additional 333,083 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 67.44% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AFL has been the subject of several research reports. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on Aflac from $104.00 to $102.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Aflac from $103.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Aflac from $90.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Aflac from $96.00 to $98.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Aflac from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $103.71.

Aflac Stock Performance

Shares of AFL opened at $106.65 on Tuesday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $105.50 and its 200-day moving average price is $106.55. The stock has a market cap of $59.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.06, a P/E/G ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.99. Aflac Incorporated has a 52 week low of $75.44 and a 52 week high of $115.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 0.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

Aflac Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 19th will be given a dividend of $0.58 per share. This represents a $2.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.18%. This is a boost from Aflac’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 19th. Aflac’s payout ratio is presently 30.12%.

Insider Transactions at Aflac

In related news, EVP Audrey B. Tillman sold 24,744 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.40, for a total transaction of $2,558,529.60. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 222,618 shares in the company, valued at $23,018,701.20. This trade represents a 10.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Aflac 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.