Dividend increase AFLAC 2018 (AFL)

A dividend increase of AFLAC.

This week AFLAC Incorporated (AFL) announced a 15.6% increase in its quarterly dividend. The dividend is raised from $0.45 to $0.52. The dividend pay date is March 1, 2018 to shareholders of record on February 21, 2018 (ex dividend February 20, 2018). This is the 36^th Consecutive Annual Increase.

And AFLAC also announced a share buy back program in the range of $1.1 to $1.4 billion. This is about 3,5% of all outstanding shares. I love share buy backs! For more information and my opinion about share buy backs, see the post about the share buy back of Ahold Delhaize.

CEO Daniel P. Amos stated:

“We remain committed to maintaining strong capital ratios on behalf of our policyholders and balance this financial strength with a focus on increasing the dividend, repurchasing shares and reinvesting in our business. The board of directors’ action to increase the dividend by 15.6% reflects overall strength in the company’s capital position, along with an outlook for stable growth in earnings and deployable capital generation. This accelerated resetting of the dividend as we enter 2018 demonstrates our commitment to rewarding our shareholders. Additionally, we expect share repurchase will be in the range of $1.1 to $1.4 billion in 2018, which assumes stable capital conditions and the absence of compelling alternatives. At the same time, we recognize that prudent investment in our platform is also critical to our growth strategy and driving efficiencies that ultimately will impact the bottom line.”