Aflac Incorporated $AFL Stock Position Cut by Japan Post Holdings Co. Ltd.

Japan Post Holdings Co. Ltd. reduced its holdings in shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 50,898,490 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,076,010 shares during the quarter. Aflac accounts for about 100.0% of Japan Post Holdings Co. Ltd.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its largest holding. Japan Post Holdings Co. Ltd. owned about 0.10% of Aflac worth $5,967,848,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in Aflac in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Groupe la Francaise bought a new stake in shares of Aflac in the 1st quarter worth about $25,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac in the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Nalls Sherbakoff Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Aflac during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Evergreen Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Aflac in the first quarter worth about $29,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.44% of the company’s stock.

Key Aflac News

Here are the key news stories impacting Aflac this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Accident and health insurers, including Aflac, could benefit from increased underwriting exposure and accelerated digitalization as demand for supplemental coverage grows. However, rising medical costs and inflation could limit the benefit through pricing pressure. 4 Accident & Health Insurers to Watch Amid Elevated Healthcare Costs
• Positive Sentiment: Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised its Aflac price target from $120 to $125 while maintaining a “market perform” rating, suggesting modest upside based on its valuation assessment. Benzinga analyst note
• Neutral Sentiment: Aflac is expanding its support for children with cancer and blood disorders through a social-emotional learning initiative with educator Ron Clark and DonorsChoose. The program may strengthen the company’s brand, but it is unlikely to materially affect near-term earnings. Aflac, Ron Clark and DonorsChoose social-emotional learning initiative
• Neutral Sentiment: News about “AFL Integria,” a Canadian connectivity-services division, concerns a separate fiber-optics company also named AFL and does not relate to Aflac Incorporated or the NYSE:AFL stock. AFL Integria rebrand
• Negative Sentiment: JPMorgan lowered its Aflac price target from $117 to $116 and retained a “neutral” rating, indicating that the bank sees downside from current levels. Benzinga analyst note
• Negative Sentiment: Dowling & Partners reduced its fiscal 2026 EPS estimate to $7.00 from $7.05, adding to concerns about earnings momentum after Aflac’s latest quarterly EPS slightly missed consensus and revenue declined year over year.
• Negative Sentiment: Wall Street’s overall stance remains cautious because Aflac has lagged the broader S&P 500 over the past year, reinforcing investor concerns about limited near-term upside. Aflac Incorporated Stock Outlook

Insider Buying and Selling at Aflac

In related news, Director Joseph L. Moskowitz sold 12,370 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.54, for a total value of $1,441,599.80. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 33,310 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,881,947.40. This trade represents a 27.08% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, major shareholder Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 27,845 shares of Aflac stock in a transaction on Monday, June 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.71, for a total transaction of $3,249,789.95. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 50,898,490 shares in the company, valued at $5,940,362,767.90. This trade represents a 0.05% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 671,473 shares of company stock valued at $78,644,902. 0.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AFL has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $124.00 price target (up from $114.00) on shares of Aflac in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Aflac from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating and set a $108.00 target price (up from $100.00) on shares of Aflac in a report on Friday, July 10th. Mizuho set a $116.00 target price on shares of Aflac in a report on Monday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Aflac from $117.00 to $116.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $117.58.

Aflac Price Performance

NYSE AFL opened at $121.04 on Wednesday. Aflac Incorporated has a 52 week low of $103.51 and a 52 week high of $130.22. The company has a current ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 0.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The stock has a market cap of $61.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $121.06 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $115.59.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.75 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.76 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $4.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.11 billion. Aflac had a return on equity of 13.27% and a net margin of 26.91%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.78 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Aflac Incorporated will post 7.05 EPS for the current year.

Aflac Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.61 per share. This represents a $2.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 19th. Aflac’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.15%.

Aflac 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.