Don't Ignore The Insider Selling In Aflac
Some Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) shareholders may be a little concerned to see that the President and Representative Director, Masatoshi Koide, recently sold a substantial US$1.2m worth of stock at a price of US$118 per share. That's a big disposal, and it decreased their holding size by 12%, which is notable but not too bad.
Aflac Insider Transactions Over The Last Year
The Senior EVP & CFO, Max Kristian Broden, made the biggest insider sale in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for US$1.5m worth of shares at a price of US$118 each. That means that an insider was selling shares at around the current price of US$116. While we don't usually like to see insider selling, it's more concerning if the sales take place at a lower price. In this case, the big sale took place at around the current price, so it's not too bad (but it's still not a positive).
In the last year Aflac insiders didn't buy any company stock. The chart below shows insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year. If you click on the chart, you can see all the individual transactions, including the share price, individual, and the date!
See our latest analysis for Aflac
I will like Aflac better if I see some big insider buys. While we wait, check out this free list of undervalued and small cap stocks with considerable, recent, insider buying.
Insider Ownership
Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by insiders. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. Aflac insiders own about US$447m worth of shares (which is 0.8% of the company). I like to see this level of insider ownership, because it increases the chances that management are thinking about the best interests of shareholders.
What Might The Insider Transactions At Aflac Tell Us?
An insider sold Aflac shares recently, but they didn't buy any. And there weren't any purchases to give us comfort, over the last year. But it is good to see that Aflac is growing earnings. It is good to see high insider ownership, but the insider selling leaves us cautious. While it's good to be aware of what's going on with the insider's ownership and transactions, we make sure to also consider what risks are facing a stock before making any investment decision. At Simply Wall St, we've found that Aflac has 2 warning signs (1 makes us a bit uncomfortable!) that deserve your attention before going any further with your analysis.
Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking elsewhere. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies.
For the purposes of this article, insiders are those individuals who report their transactions to the relevant regulatory body. We currently account for open market transactions and private dispositions of direct interests only, but not derivative transactions or indirect interests.
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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.