Saudi Central Bank Buys 14,078 Shares of Aflac Incorporated $AFL

Saudi Central Bank boosted its position in shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 76.6% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 32,456 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 14,078 shares during the period. Saudi Central Bank’s holdings in Aflac were worth $3,805,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of AFL. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Aflac during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $4,093,787,000. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Aflac during the fourth quarter worth $420,078,000. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new stake in Aflac during the second quarter worth $404,639,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in Aflac in the second quarter valued at $298,418,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE bought a new position in shares of Aflac in the 2nd quarter valued at about $244,516,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.44% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Aflac

In related news, major shareholder Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 53,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.74, for a total transaction of $6,240,220.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 51,014,735 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,006,474,898.90. This trade represents a 0.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 468,015 shares of company stock valued at $54,991,090 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Aflac News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Aflac this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Aflac partnered with actor Ben Affleck and its iconic duck for a new advertising campaign, including branded billboards and social-media activity in Los Angeles. The campaign could increase consumer awareness and support future policy sales, although its direct financial impact is uncertain. Ben Affleck and the Aflac Duck Unite for New Ad Campaign
• Positive Sentiment: Aflac remains attractive to income-focused and defensive investors. The company pays a quarterly dividend of $0.61 per share, equivalent to $2.44 annually, with an approximately 2.1% yield and a payout ratio near 26%. A recent dividend-focused article also recognized Aflac’s long record of annual increases. Safe High-Yield Dividend Stocks
• Neutral Sentiment: The Ben Affleck billboard activity appears to be a planned publicity campaign rather than actual vandalism. It may generate short-term brand engagement, but no revenue, earnings guidance or other measurable financial benefit was announced. Ben Affleck Aflac Advertising Campaign
• Negative Sentiment: Japan Post Holdings, a major Aflac shareholder, sold 13,500 shares for approximately $1.58 million on September 2 and has reported several similar sales in recent weeks. The latest transaction reduced its stake by only about 0.03% and was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan, limiting its significance, but the repeated selling may create a modest supply overhang. Aflac Major Shareholder SEC Filing

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on AFL. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Aflac in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $103.00 target price on the stock. Mizuho set a $116.00 price objective on Aflac in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Barclays reiterated an “underweight” rating and set a $99.00 target price (up from $98.00) on shares of Aflac in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Aflac from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Aflac from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 15th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $116.62.

Aflac Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AFL opened at $117.09 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $58.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 0.59. The business’s 50 day moving average is $121.49 and its 200-day moving average is $116.28. The company has a current ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 0.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. Aflac Incorporated has a 1-year low of $104.66 and a 1-year high of $130.22.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.76 by ($0.01). Aflac had a net margin of 26.91% and a return on equity of 13.27%. The firm had revenue of $4.22 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.11 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.78 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Aflac Incorporated will post 7.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Aflac Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 19th were given a $0.61 dividend. This represents a $2.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 19th. Aflac’s payout ratio is presently 26.15%.

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.