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 firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the insider owned 52,061,800 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,543,019,846. The trade was a 0.03% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 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 Thursday, March 19th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 10,100 shares of Aflac stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $107.41, for a total transaction of $1,084,841.00.
• On Wednesday, March 18th, Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 12,200 shares of Aflac stock. The stock was 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 shares were 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 shares were 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 stock was sold at an average price of $109.60, for a total value 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 value 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 stock was 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 shares were 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 shares were sold at an average price of $110.96, for a total transaction of $2,141,528.00.

Aflac Price Performance

AFL stock traded up $0.13 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $106.78. The company had a trading volume of 198,250 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,381,080. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $111.31 and a 200 day moving average price of $110.37. Aflac Incorporated has a 12-month low of $96.95 and a 12-month high of $119.32. The company has a market capitalization of $55.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.50, a P/E/G ratio of 3.48 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a quick ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 0.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $1.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.69 by ($0.12). Aflac had a return on equity of 14.35% and a net margin of 21.24%.The firm had revenue of $4.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.45 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.57 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Stephens Inc. AR raised its position in Aflac by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Stephens Inc. AR now owns 21,945 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,420,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares in the last quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC increased its stake 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 buying an additional 92 shares during the period. CENTRAL TRUST Co increased its stake 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 buying an additional 95 shares during the period. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC raised its holdings in shares of Aflac by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 7,702 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $902,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Confluence Wealth Services Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Aflac by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. now owns 11,923 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,315,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. 67.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on AFL shares. Morgan Stanley set a $120.00 price target on shares of Aflac in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Barclays set a $101.00 target price on shares of Aflac and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Mizuho set a $107.00 price target on Aflac in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Raymond James Financial reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $119.00 price objective (up from $110.00) on shares of Aflac in a research note on Tuesday, December 30th. Finally, TD Cowen restated a “hold” rating on shares of Aflac in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Aflac currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $111.73.

Aflac Company Profile

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.