Aflac (NYSE:AFL) Major Shareholder Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan Sells 12,000 Shares of Company Stock

Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) major shareholder Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 12,000 shares of Aflac stock in a transaction on Friday, October 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $114.72, for a total transaction of $1,376,640.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 50,357,140 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,776,971,100.80. This trade represents a 0.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 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 Monday, October 12th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 12,200 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $115.85, for a total transaction of $1,413,370.00.
• On Thursday, October 8th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 13,000 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.45, for a total transaction of $1,487,850.00.
• On Wednesday, October 7th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 12,000 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $112.80, for a total transaction of $1,353,600.00.
• On Tuesday, October 6th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 13,050 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.49, for a total transaction of $1,481,044.50.
• On Monday, October 5th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 13,000 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $112.25, for a total transaction of $1,459,250.00.
• On Friday, October 2nd, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 13,200 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.30, for a total transaction of $1,469,160.00.
• On Thursday, October 1st, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 11,900 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.18, for a total transaction of $1,323,042.00.
• On Tuesday, September 29th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 12,100 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.36, for a total transaction of $1,371,656.00.
• On Monday, September 28th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 12,000 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.63, for a total transaction of $1,363,560.00.
• On Thursday, September 24th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 12,100 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $114.64, for a total transaction of $1,387,144.00.

Aflac Trading Up 1.4%

Shares of NYSE:AFL opened at $118.09 on Thursday. Aflac Incorporated has a 12-month low of $105.43 and a 12-month high of $130.22. The stock has a market cap of $59.20 billion, a PE ratio of 12.66, a P/E/G ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 0.56. The business has a 50 day moving average of $116.63 and a 200-day moving average of $117.10. The company has a quick ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 0.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last posted its 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.11 billion. Aflac had a net margin of 26.91% and a return on equity of 13.27%. Aflac’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.78 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Aflac Incorporated will post 7.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Aflac Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 19th were 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 was Wednesday, August 19th. Aflac’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.15%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AFL has been the topic of a number of research reports. Mizuho decreased their price objective on Aflac from $116.00 to $107.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on Aflac from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 9th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Aflac from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, August 10th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Aflac from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Aflac from $122.00 to $116.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Aflac presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $117.00.

Key Aflac News

Here are the key news stories impacting Aflac this week:

• Positive Sentiment: AM Best affirmed the credit ratings of Aflac and its subsidiaries, reinforcing confidence in the insurer’s financial strength and ability to meet policyholder obligations. AM Best Affirms Aflac Credit Ratings
• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America maintained a Buy rating while lowering its price target from $137 to $133. The revised target still indicates meaningful potential upside from recent trading levels. Bank of America Aflac Price Target
• Positive Sentiment: Aflac’s latest WorkForces Report found continued employee financial vulnerability and rising interest in benefits education, including use of artificial intelligence. Those trends could support long-term demand for supplemental insurance products. Aflac WorkForces Report
• Neutral Sentiment: Japan Post Holdings sold additional Aflac shares under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The reported transactions reduced its ownership by only about 0.02%–0.03% each, limiting their immediate impact, although repeated sales may attract investor attention.
• Negative Sentiment: Wells Fargo cut its Aflac price target from $122 to $116 and retained an Equal Weight rating, signaling limited near-term upside at recent levels. Wells Fargo Aflac Price Target

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Aflac

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in Aflac in the second quarter valued at about $4,093,787,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its position in Aflac by 27.8% during the second quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 5,201,217 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $609,843,000 after purchasing an additional 1,132,091 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in 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 during the period. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new stake in Aflac during the second quarter worth about $404,639,000. Finally, Amundi lifted its position in Aflac by 22.6% during the first quarter. Amundi now owns 3,268,209 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $358,555,000 after purchasing an additional 603,426 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 67.44% of the company’s stock.

Aflac Company Profile

Aflac Incorporated (NYSE: AFL) is an insurance company that provides supplemental health and life insurance products to individuals, employers and groups. Its coverage is designed to help policyholders manage expenses that may not be fully covered by major medical insurance, including costs associated with illness, injury and other qualifying events.

The company’s products include accident, cancer, critical illness, hospital indemnity, disability, dental, vision and life insurance. Aflac distributes its policies through workplace benefits programs, independent agents, brokers and other distribution channels.

Founded in 1955 as American Family Life Assurance Company of Columbus, Aflac has its headquarters in Columbus, Georgia.