Insider Selling: Aflac (NYSE:AFL) Major Shareholder Sells 16,800 Shares of Stock

Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) major shareholder Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 16,800 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.47, for a total transaction of $1,788,696.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 52,061,800 shares in the company, valued at $5,543,019,846. The trade was a 0.03% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Large shareholders that own 10% or more 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 Thursday, March 19th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 10,100 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.41, for a total value of $1,084,841.00.
• On Wednesday, March 18th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 12,200 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $108.43, for a total value of $1,322,846.00.
• On Tuesday, March 17th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 15,700 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $109.77, for a total value of $1,723,389.00.
• On Friday, March 13th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 17,400 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $109.14, for a total value of $1,899,036.00.
• On Thursday, March 12th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 17,900 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $109.60, for a total transaction of $1,961,840.00.
• On Wednesday, March 11th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 18,100 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $109.53, for a total transaction of $1,982,493.00.
• On Tuesday, March 10th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 19,000 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.47, for a total transaction of $2,098,930.00.
• On Monday, March 9th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 17,300 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $109.62, for a total transaction of $1,896,426.00.
• On Friday, March 6th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 19,100 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.77, for a total transaction of $2,115,707.00.
• On Thursday, March 5th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 19,300 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.96, for a total transaction of $2,141,528.00.

Aflac Trading Up 0.1%

NYSE AFL traded up $0.13 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $106.78. 198,250 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,381,080. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $111.31 and a two-hundred day moving average of $110.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.11 and a quick ratio of 0.11. Aflac Incorporated has a 12-month low of $96.95 and a 12-month high of $119.32. The firm has a market cap of $55.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.50, a PEG ratio of 3.48 and a beta of 0.66.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $1.57 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.69 by ($0.12). Aflac had a net margin of 21.24% and a return on equity of 14.35%. The company had revenue of $4.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.45 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.57 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.88 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Aflac

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Aflac by 13.4% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 57,142,072 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,301,056,000 after buying an additional 6,759,169 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Aflac in the second quarter worth approximately $432,201,000. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its position in Aflac by 1,184.5% during the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,264,090 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $141,199,000 after buying an additional 1,165,676 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP grew its position in Aflac by 390.7% during the fourth quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,111,711 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $122,588,000 after buying an additional 885,141 shares during the period. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in Aflac by 132.4% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,227,200 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $137,078,000 after buying an additional 699,080 shares during the last quarter. 67.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on AFL. Barclays set a $101.00 price objective on Aflac and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Aflac from $101.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. TD Cowen restated a “hold” rating on shares of Aflac in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $119.00 target price (up from $110.00) on shares of Aflac in a research report on Tuesday, December 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Aflac from $109.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $111.73.

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.