Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Purchases New Shares in Aflac Incorporated $AFL

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new position in shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund purchased 188,560 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $22,109,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of AFL. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Aflac during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $4,093,787,000. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $420,078,000. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new stake in shares of Aflac in the second quarter valued at approximately $404,639,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in shares of Aflac in the second quarter valued at approximately $298,418,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new stake in Aflac during the second quarter worth approximately $244,516,000. Institutional investors own 67.44% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating and set a $108.00 price objective (up from $100.00) on shares of Aflac in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Wall Street Zen lowered Aflac from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, August 15th. Mizuho set a $116.00 price target on Aflac in a research report on Monday, August 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Aflac from $117.00 to $116.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Aflac from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $116.62.

Key Aflac News

Here are the key news stories impacting Aflac this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Aflac’s quarterly dividend remains a support for income-focused investors. The company declared a $0.61-per-share payment, equivalent to $2.44 annually and a yield of approximately 2.1%, with a relatively modest 26.15% payout ratio. A Boring Dividend Growth Strategy Becomes a Solid Defensive Play
• Neutral Sentiment: Aflac’s valuation remains relatively moderate, with a price-to-earnings ratio near 12.5. However, analyst sentiment is mixed: the consensus rating is “Hold,” and the average price target of $116.62 is close to the stock’s recent trading level.
• Neutral Sentiment: Aflac’s recent quarterly results were mixed. Earnings of $1.75 per share narrowly missed estimates, while revenue of $4.22 billion exceeded expectations; revenue nevertheless declined 1% year over year and EPS fell from $1.78 in the prior-year quarter. Aflac stock steadies as Japan Post trims stake and mixed Q2 2026 results shape outlook
• Negative Sentiment: Japan Post Holdings has continued reducing its Aflac stake, selling 13,200 shares for approximately $1.55 million on August 26 and 12,700 shares for approximately $1.48 million on August 25. The transactions were conducted under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan, and each reduced its ownership by only 0.03%, limiting the immediate fundamental impact. However, the repeated sales may create a supply overhang and weigh on investor sentiment. Major AFLAC Stakeholder Makes Bold Move With Multimillion-Dollar Stock Sale

Aflac Price Performance

Aflac stock opened at $116.66 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $58.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.50, a P/E/G ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 0.60. Aflac Incorporated has a one year low of $104.66 and a one year high of $130.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.12 and a quick ratio of 0.12. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $121.62 and its 200 day moving average is $116.21.

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 analyst estimates of $4.11 billion. Aflac had a return on equity of 13.27% and a net margin of 26.91%.The company’s quarterly revenue was down 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.78 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Aflac Incorporated will post 7.04 EPS for the current year.

Aflac Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 19th will be paid a $0.61 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 19th. This represents a $2.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. Aflac’s payout ratio is 26.15%.

Insider Transactions at Aflac

In other Aflac news, major shareholder Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 63,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.12, for a total transaction of $7,441,560.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 51,169,435 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,044,133,662.20. This represents a 0.12% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 515,325 shares of company stock valued at $60,514,826 over the last quarter. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.