Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL - Free Report) by 361.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 442,116 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 346,219 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned about 0.09% of Aflac worth $51,838,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of AFL. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Aflac by 13.4% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 57,142,072 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $6,301,056,000 after purchasing an additional 6,759,169 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Aflac by 1.5% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,550,855 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $499,216,000 after purchasing an additional 67,650 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Aflac in the fourth quarter worth about $420,078,000. Amundi boosted its position in shares of Aflac by 22.6% in the first quarter. Amundi now owns 3,268,209 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $358,555,000 after buying an additional 603,426 shares during the period. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Aflac by 161.9% in the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 3,184,801 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $349,405,000 after buying an additional 1,968,738 shares in the last quarter. 67.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
Several equities research analysts recently commented on AFL shares. Weiss Ratings downgraded Aflac from a "buy (a-)" rating to a "buy (b+)" rating in a report on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Aflac from $108.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Barclays reaffirmed an "underweight" rating and issued a $99.00 price objective (up from $98.00) on shares of Aflac in a research report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Aflac from $111.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of Aflac from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Aflac has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $116.25.
Read Our Latest Analysis on AFL
Insider Activity
In related news, major shareholder Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 63,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.12, for a total value of $7,441,560.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 51,169,435 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,044,133,662.20. This represents a 0.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 744,073 shares of company stock valued at $87,022,570. Corporate insiders own 0.80% of the company's stock.
Key Headlines Impacting Aflac
Here are the key news stories impacting Aflac this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Aflac declared a quarterly dividend of $0.61 per share, payable September 1 to shareholders of record on August 19. The dividend represents an annualized payout of approximately $2.44 per share and a yield near 2.0%, supporting the stock’s income appeal. Aflac Announces Second Quarter 2026 Results and Dividend
- Positive Sentiment: Second-quarter revenue reached $4.22 billion, exceeding the roughly $4.11 billion consensus estimate. Management also highlighted solid U.S. sales, strong policy persistency and ongoing capital returns as signs of underlying business stability. Aflac Misses Q2 EPS Estimates Despite Solid US Sales Growth
- Neutral Sentiment: Aflac’s quarterly earnings call and presentation provided additional details on operating trends, sales momentum and financial performance for investors assessing the company’s outlook. Aflac Q2 2026 Earnings Call Transcript
- Negative Sentiment: Adjusted earnings were $1.75 per share, below analyst estimates ranging from $1.76 to $1.79 and down from $1.78 a year earlier. Lower investment income and unfavorable foreign-exchange effects, including a stronger dollar, weighed on profitability. Aflac Q2 Earnings Lag Estimates
- Negative Sentiment: Revenue declined approximately 1.0% year over year, while the earnings shortfall reinforces concerns about near-term investment income and currency headwinds. These factors likely explain the negative investor reaction despite the revenue beat. Aflac Q2 Earnings Snapshot
Aflac Stock Down 1.6%
Shares of Aflac stock opened at $124.64 on Friday. Aflac Incorporated has a 1-year low of $101.49 and a 1-year high of $130.22. The company has a market capitalization of $63.44 billion, a PE ratio of 13.36, a P/E/G ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 0.11 and a quick ratio of 0.11. The business has a 50-day moving average of $120.72 and a 200-day moving average of $115.37.
Aflac (NYSE:AFL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.75 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.76 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $4.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.11 billion. Aflac had a return on equity of 13.37% and a net margin of 26.91%.The company's revenue was down 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.78 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Aflac Incorporated will post 7.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Aflac Dividend Announcement
The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 19th will be given a $0.61 dividend. This represents a $2.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 19th. Aflac's dividend payout ratio is presently 26.15%.
About Aflac
(
Free Report)
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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