Insider Selling: Aflac (NYSE:AFL) Major Shareholder Sells $2,106,540.00 in Stock

Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) major shareholder Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 18,000 shares of Aflac stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.03, for a total transaction of $2,106,540.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 51,313,545 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,005,224,171.35. This represents a 0.04% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 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 Wednesday, May 27th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 11,400 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $115.50, for a total transaction of $1,316,700.00.
• On Friday, May 22nd, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 31,100 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.78, for a total transaction of $3,662,958.00.
• On Thursday, May 21st, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 30,400 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.61, for a total transaction of $3,575,344.00.
• On Wednesday, May 20th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 31,600 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.66, for a total transaction of $3,718,056.00.
• On Tuesday, May 19th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 50,000 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.80, for a total transaction of $5,940,000.00.
• On Monday, May 18th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 41,700 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.45, for a total transaction of $4,939,365.00.
• On Friday, May 15th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 23,500 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.85, for a total transaction of $2,745,975.00.
• On Thursday, May 14th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 24,500 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.42, for a total transaction of $2,852,290.00.
• On Wednesday, May 13th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 24,200 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $115.36, for a total transaction of $2,791,712.00.
• On Tuesday, May 12th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 24,300 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $115.97, for a total transaction of $2,818,071.00.

Aflac Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of Aflac stock opened at $112.37 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $57.20 billion, a PE ratio of 12.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 0.62. 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 company’s fifty day moving average price is $113.08 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $111.78. Aflac Incorporated has a 52-week low of $96.95 and a 52-week high of $119.81.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The financial services provider reported $1.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.80 by ($0.05). The business had revenue of $4.24 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.20 billion. Aflac had a net margin of 25.60% and a return on equity of 13.88%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 27.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.66 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Aflac Incorporated will post 7.08 EPS for the current year.

Aflac Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 20th will be issued a $0.61 dividend. This represents a $2.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 20th. Aflac’s payout ratio is 27.70%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AFL has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Aflac from $116.00 to $114.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Aflac from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Aflac from $116.00 to $111.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of Aflac from $113.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Aflac from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $112.27.

Key Stories Impacting Aflac

Here are the key news stories impacting Aflac this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Aflac issued yen-denominated senior notes, which should improve financial flexibility and support capital management. Aflac Issues Yen-Denominated Senior Notes for Flexibility
• Positive Sentiment: Recent analyst estimates remain slightly above current consensus, with DOWLING & PARTN projecting modest earnings growth into FY2027 and FY2028, suggesting longer-term earnings momentum. Aflac analyst estimates
• Neutral Sentiment: Several insider sales by Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan were disclosed, but they were pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 transactions and represent only small reductions in ownership. Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan Sells 31,100 Shares of Aflac (NYSE:AFL) Stock
• Neutral Sentiment: EVP Steven Kent Beaver also sold shares in a disclosed transaction, which may weigh on sentiment but does not appear to signal a fundamental change. Steven Kent Beaver Sells 5,508 Shares of Aflac (NYSE:AFL) Stock
• Negative Sentiment: Aflac’s last quarterly report missed EPS expectations, and some analysts have trimmed or only maintained cautious ratings, limiting upside enthusiasm. Aflac earnings and analyst coverage

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Aflac by 13.4% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 57,142,072 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $6,301,056,000 after buying an additional 6,759,169 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in Aflac by 1.5% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,550,855 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $499,216,000 after buying an additional 67,650 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its position in Aflac by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 3,926,777 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $438,621,000 after buying an additional 13,666 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Aflac during the 4th quarter worth about $420,078,000. Finally, Amundi lifted its position in Aflac by 22.6% during the 1st 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 in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.44% of the company’s stock.

About Aflac

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.