Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan Sells 13,100 Shares of Aflac (NYSE:AFL) Stock

Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) major shareholder Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 13,100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.60, for a total transaction of $1,527,460.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 50,804,690 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,923,826,854. The trade was a 0.03% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Major shareholders that own at least 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 Friday, August 21st, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 12,900 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.28, for a total transaction of $1,500,012.00.
• 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 shares were sold at an average price of $121.94, for a total value of $1,731,548.00.
• On Monday, August 17th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 13,900 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.33, for a total value of $1,686,487.00.
• On Friday, August 14th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 14,100 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.43, for a total value 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 value of $1,574,170.00.
• On Monday, June 22nd, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 27,845 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.71, for a total value of $3,249,789.95.
• On Thursday, June 18th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 3,300 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.92, for a total value of $385,836.00.
• On Wednesday, June 17th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 26,300 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.62, for a total value of $3,067,106.00.
• On Tuesday, June 16th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 30,000 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.39, for a total value of $3,521,700.00.

Aflac Stock Performance

Shares of AFL stock opened at $116.17 on Wednesday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $121.56 and its 200 day simple moving average is $116.21. Aflac Incorporated has a one year low of $104.66 and a one year high of $130.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $58.24 billion, a PE ratio of 12.45, a PEG ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.12 and a quick ratio of 0.12.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.75 earnings per share 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 firm had revenue of $4.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.11 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.78 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Aflac Incorporated will post 7.04 earnings per share 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 given a dividend of $0.61 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 19th. This represents a $2.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Aflac’s dividend payout ratio is 26.15%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on AFL shares. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating and issued a $108.00 target price (up from $100.00) on shares of Aflac in a report on Friday, July 10th. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $124.00 price target (up from $114.00) on shares of Aflac in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Wolfe Research started coverage on Aflac in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $103.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Aflac from $117.00 to $116.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, Mizuho set a $116.00 target price on Aflac in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Two equities research 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’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $116.62.

Institutional Trading of Aflac

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of AFL. Archer Investment Corp acquired a new stake in Aflac in the second quarter worth $26,000. Quarry LP acquired a new position in shares of Aflac during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Groupe la Francaise acquired a new position in shares of Aflac during the first quarter valued at about $25,000. Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A. bought a new position in shares of Aflac during the 2nd quarter worth about $27,000. Finally, Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Aflac during the 1st quarter worth about $25,000. Institutional investors 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.