Conning Inc. Has $35.21 Million Stock Position in Aflac Incorporated $AFL

Key Points

• Conning Inc. has increased its stake in Aflac Incorporated by **2.0%**, owning approximately **333,847 shares** valued at **$35.21 million**.
• Aflac recently initiated a **share buyback program** allowing the repurchase of up to **100 million shares**, indicating the board's belief that the stock is undervalued.
• The company announced a **quarterly dividend of $0.58**, which translates to an annual yield of **2.1%** and a payout ratio of **52.61%**.

Conning Inc. increased its position in shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL - Free Report) by 2.0% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 333,847 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 6,404 shares during the quarter. Conning Inc. owned about 0.06% of Aflac worth $35,208,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AFL. Brighton Jones LLC raised its stake in Aflac by 64.4% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 14,570 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,507,000 after buying an additional 5,708 shares during the period. Bison Wealth LLC raised its stake in Aflac by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 4,402 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $455,000 after buying an additional 183 shares during the period. NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new position in Aflac during the 1st quarter worth approximately $44,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Aflac by 25.7% in the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 11,486 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,292,000 after purchasing an additional 2,351 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Aflac by 8.6% in the first quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC now owns 11,772 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,309,000 after purchasing an additional 937 shares in the last quarter. 67.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Aflac Stock Performance

NYSE:AFL opened at $110.78 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.11 and a quick ratio of 0.11. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $107.55 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $105.52. Aflac Incorporated has a 1 year low of $96.95 and a 1 year high of $115.44. The company has a market capitalization of $59.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.12, a P/E/G ratio of 3.08 and a beta of 0.86.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, February 27th. The financial services provider reported $1.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Aflac had a return on equity of 15.08% and a net margin of 15.32%.The business had revenue of $5.91 billion during the quarter. On average, analysts expect that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Aflac announced that its board has initiated a share buyback program on Tuesday, August 12th that permits the company to repurchase 100,000,000 shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Aflac Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 20th were given a $0.58 dividend. This represents a $2.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 20th. Aflac's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 52.61%.

Insider Transactions at Aflac

In other Aflac news, Director Joseph L. Moskowitz sold 1,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.57, for a total value of $102,570.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 25,105 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,575,019.85. This trade represents a 3.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Aflac from $105.00 to $107.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, August 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Aflac from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Aflac from $108.00 to $113.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, August 18th. Evercore ISI set a $110.00 target price on Aflac and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Aflac from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $109.45.

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.

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