Aflac (NYSE:AFL) Major Shareholder Sells $1,527,460.00 in Stock

Key Points

• Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 13,100 Aflac shares at an average price of $116.60, generating $1.53 million. The sale was conducted under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan, leaving the shareholder with approximately 50.8 million shares.
• Aflac shares rose 1.6% to $117.96, while the company’s latest quarterly earnings slightly missed expectations at $1.75 per share, despite revenue of $4.22 billion exceeding forecasts.
• Aflac declared a quarterly dividend of $0.61 per share, equivalent to $2.44 annually and a 2.1% yield. Analysts collectively rate the stock “Hold,” with a consensus price target of $116.62.

Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL - Get Free Report) major shareholder Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 13,100 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.60, for a total transaction of $1,527,460.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 50,804,690 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,923,826,854. This represents a 0.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Major shareholders that own at least 10% of a company's shares are required to disclose their sales and purchases with the SEC.

Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Wednesday, August 19th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 12,700 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.05, for a total transaction of $1,486,535.00.
• On Tuesday, August 18th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 14,200 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.94, for a total value of $1,731,548.00.
• On Monday, August 17th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 13,900 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.33, for a total value of $1,686,487.00.
• On Friday, August 14th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 14,100 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.43, for a total value of $1,712,163.00.
• On Thursday, August 13th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 13,000 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.09, for a total value of $1,574,170.00.
• On Monday, June 22nd, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 27,845 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.71, for a total value of $3,249,789.95.
• On Thursday, June 18th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 3,300 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.92, for a total value of $385,836.00.
• On Wednesday, June 17th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 26,300 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.62, for a total value of $3,067,106.00.
• On Tuesday, June 16th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 30,000 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.39, for a total transaction of $3,521,700.00.
• On Monday, June 15th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 28,800 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.17, for a total transaction of $3,374,496.00.

Aflac Stock Up 1.6%

Shares of AFL stock traded up $1.89 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $117.96. 391,927 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,330,871. Aflac Incorporated has a 52-week low of $104.66 and a 52-week high of $130.22. The stock has a market cap of $59.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.64, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.12 and a quick ratio of 0.12. The stock's fifty day moving average is $121.55 and its two-hundred day moving average is $116.15.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.76 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $4.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.11 billion. Aflac had a return on equity of 13.27% and a net margin of 26.91%.The firm's quarterly revenue was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.78 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Aflac Incorporated will post 7.04 EPS for the current year.

Aflac Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 19th will be given a dividend of $0.61 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 19th. This represents a $2.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Aflac's dividend payout ratio is presently 26.15%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AFL has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Aflac from $117.00 to $116.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on Aflac from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Wolfe Research began coverage on Aflac in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. They issued an "underperform" rating and a $103.00 price target for the company. Piper Sandler restated an "overweight" rating and set a $138.00 price target (up from $130.00) on shares of Aflac in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $122.00 price objective on shares of Aflac and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $116.62.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Aflac

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. California State Teachers Retirement System lifted its holdings in shares of Aflac by 11,094.0% in the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 86,458,157 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $10,137,219,000 after buying an additional 85,685,796 shares during the period. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Aflac in the second quarter worth about $4,093,787,000. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Aflac by 13.4% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 57,142,072 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $6,301,056,000 after acquiring an additional 6,759,169 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Aflac during the fourth quarter worth about $420,078,000. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new position in Aflac during the second quarter valued at approximately $404,639,000. 67.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Aflac Company Profile

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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