Insider Selling: Aflac (NYSE:AFL) Major Shareholder Sells 14,100 Shares

Key Points

• Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 14,100 Aflac shares at an average price of $121.43, generating $1.71 million. The sale was made under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan, leaving the shareholder with roughly 50.86 million shares.
• Aflac shares rose 1.2% to $122.44, with the stock trading near its 50-day moving average and below its 12-month high of $130.22.
• Aflac reported quarterly EPS of $1.75, narrowly missing estimates, while revenue of $4.22 billion exceeded expectations. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.61 per share, equivalent to a 2.0% annualized yield.

Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL - Get Free Report) major shareholder Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 14,100 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.43, for a total value of $1,712,163.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 50,858,590 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,175,758,583.70. This represents a 0.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Large shareholders that own more than 10% of a company's stock are required to disclose their transactions with the SEC.

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

• On Thursday, August 13th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 13,000 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.09, for a total transaction of $1,574,170.00.
• On Monday, June 22nd, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 27,845 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.71, for a total transaction of $3,249,789.95.
• On Thursday, June 18th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 3,300 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.92, for a total transaction 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 transaction of $3,067,106.00.
• On Tuesday, June 16th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 30,000 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were 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.
• On Friday, June 12th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 53,000 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.74, for a total transaction of $6,240,220.00.
• On Thursday, June 11th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 48,500 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.20, for a total transaction of $5,684,200.00.
• On Wednesday, June 10th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 26,500 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.00, for a total transaction of $3,100,500.00.
• On Tuesday, June 9th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 12,800 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $115.43, for a total value of $1,477,504.00.

Aflac Trading Up 1.2%

NYSE:AFL traded up $1.46 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $122.44. 418,236 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,331,457. The company has a quick ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 0.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The business has a 50-day moving average of $121.47 and a two-hundred day moving average of $115.95. Aflac Incorporated has a twelve month low of $104.66 and a twelve month high of $130.22. The company has a market capitalization of $61.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.11, a PEG ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 0.60.

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 firm had revenue of $4.22 billion for 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 company's quarterly revenue was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.78 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Aflac Incorporated will post 7.04 EPS for the current year.

Aflac Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.61 per share. This represents a $2.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 19th. Aflac's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.15%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Aflac

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 5,708 shares in the last quarter. Bison Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in Aflac by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 4,402 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $455,000 after purchasing an additional 183 shares in the last quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd purchased a new position in Aflac in the second quarter valued at approximately $280,000. Sei Investments Co. increased its stake in Aflac by 11.2% in the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 150,334 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $15,854,000 after purchasing an additional 15,105 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Main Street Financial Solutions LLC raised its holdings in Aflac by 1.6% during the second quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 11,953 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,261,000 after purchasing an additional 192 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.44% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Aflac from $111.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Mizuho set a $116.00 target price on shares of Aflac in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on shares of Aflac from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Aflac from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Finally, Barclays reissued an "underweight" rating and issued a $99.00 price target (up from $98.00) on shares of Aflac in a research report on Friday, August 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Aflac presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $117.58.

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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