Royal Palms Capital LLC Invests $2.96 Million in Aflac Incorporated $AFL

Key Points

• Royal Palms Capital LLC initiated a new position in Aflac during the fourth quarter, buying 26,867 shares worth about $2.96 million. The stake now represents roughly 3.5% of the firm’s portfolio.
• Analyst sentiment on Aflac is mixed: the stock carries an average “Hold” rating and a consensus price target of $112.27. Recent updates included rating upgrades from Weiss Ratings and Evercore, while Barclays and Wells Fargo maintained more cautious views.
• Aflac reported quarterly earnings of $1.75 per share, missing estimates, though revenue came in above expectations at $4.24 billion. The company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.61 per share, payable June 1, for an annualized yield of about 2.1%.

Royal Palms Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 26,867 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $2,963,000. Aflac accounts for about 3.5% of Royal Palms Capital LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest holding.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Navalign LLC acquired a new stake in Aflac in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Aflac in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Activest Wealth Management raised its position in Aflac by 95.6% in the 4th quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 311 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 152 shares during the last quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Aflac by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 324 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 162 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Park Square Financial Group LLC raised its position in Aflac by 80.6% in the 4th quarter. Park Square Financial Group LLC now owns 354 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 158 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.44% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings raised Aflac from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (a-)" rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on Aflac from $113.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Barclays set a $99.00 target price on Aflac and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Aflac from $116.00 to $111.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Evercore raised Aflac from a "strong sell" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $112.27.

Insider Buying and Selling at Aflac

In other Aflac news, major shareholder Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 166,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $112.38, for a total transaction of $18,655,080.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 51,723,100 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,812,641,978. The trade was a 0.32% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 844,428 shares of company stock worth $95,391,275. 0.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Aflac Stock Down 0.8%

NYSE:AFL opened at $116.89 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $59.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.62. Aflac Incorporated has a twelve month low of $96.95 and a twelve month high of $119.81. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $112.81 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $111.78. The company has a quick ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 0.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The financial services provider reported $1.75 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.80 by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $4.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.20 billion. Aflac had a return on equity of 13.88% and a net margin of 25.60%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 27.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.66 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Aflac Incorporated will post 7.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Aflac Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 20th will be given a dividend of $0.61 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 20th. This represents a $2.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Aflac's payout ratio is 27.70%.

About Aflac

Aflac Incorporated (American Family Life Assurance Company of Columbus) is a provider of supplemental insurance products designed to help policyholders manage out-of-pocket health care and living expenses. The company underwrites a range of individual and group policies that typically pay cash benefits directly to insureds when covered events occur, enabling greater financial flexibility for medical treatment, hospital stays, critical illness, and related costs. Aflac's product mix includes supplemental health insurance, life insurance and other specialty coverages intended to complement primary medical plans.

Founded in the mid-20th century and headquartered in Columbus, Georgia, Aflac distributes its products through a combination of employer-sponsored programs, independent brokers and agents, and direct marketing.

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