Insider Selling: Aflac (NYSE:AFL) Major Shareholder Sells $1,387,144.00 in Stock

by · The Markets Daily

Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL – Get Free Report) major shareholder Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 12,100 shares of Aflac stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $114.64, for a total value of $1,387,144.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 50,469,390 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,785,810,869.60. This represents a 0.02% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through 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 shares are required to disclose their sales and purchases with the SEC.

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

  • On Monday, September 28th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 12,000 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.63, for a total transaction of $1,363,560.00.
  • On Wednesday, September 23rd, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 13,500 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $115.20, for a total transaction of $1,555,200.00.
  • On Monday, September 21st, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 12,200 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $115.49, for a total transaction of $1,408,978.00.
  • On Friday, September 18th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 12,800 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.22, for a total transaction of $1,487,616.00.
  • On Thursday, September 17th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 12,900 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.58, for a total transaction of $1,503,882.00.
  • On Wednesday, September 16th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 13,800 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.49, for a total transaction of $1,621,362.00.
  • On Monday, September 14th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 13,600 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.74, for a total transaction of $1,587,664.00.
  • On Friday, September 11th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 14,000 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $115.14, for a total value of $1,611,960.00.
  • On Thursday, September 10th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 13,300 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.32, for a total value of $1,520,456.00.
  • On Tuesday, September 8th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 13,600 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $115.44, for a total value of $1,569,984.00.

Aflac Stock Down 1.6%

Aflac stock opened at $111.90 on Thursday. Aflac Incorporated has a 12 month low of $105.43 and a 12 month high of $130.22. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $119.15 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $116.65. The company has a current ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 0.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The firm has a market cap of $56.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.99, a PEG ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 0.59.

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

Aflac Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 19th were issued a dividend of $0.61 per share. This represents a $2.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 19th. Aflac’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.15%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Aflac

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Aflac in the second quarter worth approximately $4,093,787,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its position in shares of Aflac by 27.8% during the 2nd 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 valued at $609,843,000 after acquiring an additional 1,132,091 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Aflac by 1.5% in 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 purchasing an additional 67,650 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Aflac in the 4th quarter worth $420,078,000. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc bought a new position in Aflac in the 2nd quarter worth $404,639,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.44% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on AFL shares. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of Aflac in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $103.00 price objective for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on shares of Aflac from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $108.00 target price (up from $100.00) on shares of Aflac in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Barclays reissued an “underweight” rating and set a $99.00 price target (up from $98.00) on shares of Aflac in a report on Friday, August 7th. Finally, TD Cowen restated a “hold” rating and issued a $110.00 price target (up from $101.00) on shares of Aflac in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $116.62.

Check Out Our Latest Stock Report on AFL

About Aflac

(Get Free Report)

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.

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