Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan Sells 24,100 Shares of Aflac (NYSE:AFL) Stock

Key Points

• Major shareholder Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 24,100 Aflac shares on May 11 at an average price of $114.85, worth about $2.77 million, reducing its ownership by just 0.05% under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan.
• The shareholder has been steadily selling Aflac stock in recent weeks, including large transactions in April and March, while still holding more than 51.6 million shares valued at about $5.93 billion.
• Aflac shares were trading near $115.45, and the company recently reported quarterly earnings of $1.75 per share, slightly below estimates, while also announcing a quarterly dividend of $0.61 per share.

Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL - Get Free Report) major shareholder Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 24,100 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $114.85, for a total value of $2,767,885.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 51,612,845 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,927,735,248.25. This represents a 0.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Large 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 Thursday, April 9th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 86,155 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.24, for a total value of $9,756,192.20.
• On Wednesday, April 8th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 166,000 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $112.38, for a total value of $18,655,080.00.
• On Tuesday, April 7th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 24,200 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.45, for a total value of $2,672,890.00.
• On Monday, April 6th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 21,500 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.34, for a total value of $2,372,310.00.
• On Thursday, April 2nd, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 20,100 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.20, for a total value of $2,215,020.00.
• On Wednesday, April 1st, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 19,600 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $109.85, for a total value of $2,153,060.00.
• On Wednesday, March 25th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 14,200 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.03, for a total value of $1,519,826.00.
• On Monday, March 23rd, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 15,000 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.78, for a total value of $1,601,700.00.
• On Friday, March 20th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 16,800 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.47, for a total value of $1,788,696.00.
• On Thursday, March 19th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 10,100 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $107.41, for a total value of $1,084,841.00.

Aflac Stock Performance

Shares of AFL stock traded down $0.71 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $115.45. The stock had a trading volume of 805,762 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,312,350. The business's fifty day moving average is $111.53 and its 200-day moving average is $111.10. The company has a current ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 0.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The firm has a market cap of $58.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.10, a PEG ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 0.62. Aflac Incorporated has a 1-year low of $96.95 and a 1-year high of $119.32.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The financial services provider reported $1.75 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.80 by ($0.05). The firm had revenue of $4.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.20 billion. Aflac had a net margin of 25.60% and a return on equity of 13.88%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 27.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.66 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Aflac Incorporated will post 7.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Aflac Announces Dividend

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Aflac

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AFL. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac in the first quarter valued at $25,000. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Nalls Sherbakoff Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Evergreen Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac in the first quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Navalign LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac in the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.44% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AFL has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Mizuho set a $104.00 price objective on Aflac in a report on Monday, May 4th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased 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. Weiss Ratings downgraded Aflac from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Barclays set a $99.00 target price on Aflac and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Piper Sandler decreased their target price on Aflac from $130.00 to $125.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Aflac has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $111.36.

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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