Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan Sells 9,200 Shares of Aflac (NYSE:AFL) Stock

Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) major shareholder Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 9,200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $112.75, for a total transaction of $1,037,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 51,283,845 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,782,253,523.75. This represents a 0.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Large shareholders that own 10% or more 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, June 1st, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 9,060 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $112.53, for a total transaction of $1,019,521.80.
• On Thursday, May 28th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 9,100 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.22, for a total transaction of $1,030,302.00.
• On Wednesday, May 27th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 11,400 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $115.50, for a total transaction of $1,316,700.00.
• On Tuesday, May 26th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 18,000 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.03, for a total value of $2,106,540.00.
• 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 value 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 value 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 value of $3,718,056.00.
• On Tuesday, May 19th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 50,000 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.80, for a total value of $5,940,000.00.
• On Monday, May 18th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 41,700 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.45, for a total value of $4,939,365.00.
• On Friday, May 15th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 23,500 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.85, for a total value of $2,745,975.00.

Aflac Stock Performance

Shares of AFL opened at $114.32 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 0.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $113.48 and its 200-day moving average price is $111.75. Aflac Incorporated has a 52 week low of $96.95 and a 52 week high of $119.81. The stock has a market cap of $58.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.98, a P/E/G ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 0.61.

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

Aflac Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 20th were given 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, May 20th. Aflac’s dividend payout ratio is 27.70%.

More Aflac News

Here are the key news stories impacting Aflac this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Piper Sandler reportedly raised its price target on Aflac and maintained an overweight view on insurance carriers, which can support sentiment toward the stock. Piper Sandler Raises Aflac (AFL) Price Target, Favors Insurance Carriers over Brokers
• Positive Sentiment: The company recently paid its quarterly dividend of $0.61 per share, reinforcing Aflac’s appeal as a cash-generating insurer with a roughly 2.1% annual yield.
• Neutral Sentiment: Aflac’s shares were noted around the low-$113 area, near recent moving averages, while a DCF-based analysis suggested the stock is fairly valued near $110, implying limited immediate upside or downside from valuation alone. AFL Fairly Valued by DCF at $110
• Negative Sentiment: Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan, Aflac’s major shareholder, disclosed another small insider sale, continuing a recent string of planned share reductions. Such repeated selling can create a mild overhang on sentiment. SEC filing

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Aflac

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AFL. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its holdings in Aflac by 64.4% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 14,570 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,507,000 after purchasing an additional 5,708 shares in the last quarter. Bison Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in Aflac by 4.3% during 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 during the second quarter valued at approximately $280,000. Sei Investments Co. lifted its holdings in Aflac by 11.2% during 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Main Street Financial Solutions LLC lifted 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 valued at $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 Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on AFL shares. Barclays set a $99.00 price objective on shares of Aflac and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Mizuho set a $104.00 price objective on shares of Aflac in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Aflac from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Aflac from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Finally, UBS Group lowered 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. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $112.27.

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.