Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan Sells 19,300 Shares of Aflac (NYSE:AFL) Stock

Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) major shareholder Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 19,300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.96, for a total transaction of $2,141,528.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 52,241,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,796,716,840. This represents a 0.04% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Large shareholders that own at least 10% of a company’s shares are required to disclose their transactions with the SEC.

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

• On Friday, March 6th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 19,100 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.77, for a total transaction of $2,115,707.00.

Aflac Stock Performance

Shares of AFL stock opened at $110.35 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $56.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.04, a PEG ratio of 3.61 and a beta of 0.66. Aflac Incorporated has a 52-week low of $96.95 and a 52-week high of $119.32. The company has a quick ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 0.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The company’s 50 day moving average is $111.70 and its 200 day moving average is $110.30.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last posted its earnings results 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). The company had revenue of $4.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.45 billion. Aflac had a return on equity of 14.35% and a net margin of 21.24%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.57 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Aflac from $101.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Aflac from $109.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Barclays set a $101.00 price target on shares of Aflac and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b+)” rating on shares of Aflac in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. Finally, TD Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Aflac in a research note on Monday, December 22nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $111.73.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Aflac

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Aflac by 13.4% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 57,142,072 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $6,301,056,000 after acquiring an additional 6,759,169 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Aflac during the second quarter valued at $432,201,000. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Aflac by 1,184.5% in 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 purchasing an additional 1,165,676 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP boosted its holdings in Aflac by 390.7% in 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 purchasing an additional 885,141 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in Aflac by 132.4% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,227,200 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $137,078,000 after purchasing an additional 699,080 shares during the period. 67.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.