Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan Sells 12,700 Shares of Aflac (NYSE:AFL) Stock

Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) major shareholder Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 12,700 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.67, for a total value of $1,481,709.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 50,739,690 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,919,799,632.30. The trade was a 0.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 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 sales and purchases with the SEC.

Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Wednesday, August 26th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 13,200 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.35, for a total value of $1,549,020.00.
• On Tuesday, August 25th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 12,700 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.49, for a total value of $1,479,423.00.
• On Monday, August 24th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 13,500 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.02, for a total value of $1,593,270.00.
• On Friday, August 21st, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 12,900 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.28, for a total transaction of $1,500,012.00.
• On Thursday, August 20th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 13,100 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.60, for a total transaction of $1,527,460.00.
• On Wednesday, August 19th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 12,700 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.05, for a total transaction of $1,486,535.00.
• On Tuesday, August 18th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 14,200 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.94, for a total transaction of $1,731,548.00.
• On Monday, August 17th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 13,900 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.33, for a total transaction of $1,686,487.00.
• On Friday, August 14th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 14,100 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.43, for a total transaction of $1,712,163.00.
• On Thursday, August 13th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 13,000 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.09, for a total transaction of $1,574,170.00.

Aflac Trading Down 0.4%

Shares of NYSE:AFL traded down $0.43 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $116.09. 1,500,037 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,323,462. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.12 and a quick ratio of 0.12. The firm has a market cap of $58.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.44, a P/E/G ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 0.60. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $121.62 and its 200 day simple moving average is $116.23. Aflac Incorporated has a 1 year low of $104.66 and a 1 year high of $130.22.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.75 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.76 by ($0.01). The company 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%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.78 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Aflac Incorporated will post 7.04 EPS for the current year.

Aflac Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently issued reports on AFL. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $124.00 target price (up from $114.00) on shares of Aflac in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Aflac from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 15th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Aflac from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $108.00 price objective (up from $100.00) on shares of Aflac in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Finally, Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $138.00 price objective (up from $130.00) on shares of Aflac in a report on Monday, August 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Aflac currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $116.62.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Aflac

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Stephens Inc. AR boosted its stake in shares of Aflac by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Stephens Inc. AR now owns 21,945 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,420,000 after acquiring an additional 91 shares in the last quarter. Compound Planning Inc. raised its position in shares of Aflac by 0.7% during the first quarter. Compound Planning Inc. now owns 13,743 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,508,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares during the period. Root Financial Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Aflac by 4.5% during the fourth quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 2,119 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $234,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co lifted its holdings in shares of Aflac by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 19,088 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,105,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HBK Sorce Advisory LLC boosted its position in shares of Aflac by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 7,702 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $902,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the period. 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.