Aflac’s 45% Surge in Daily Trading Volume Propels It Into Top 500 High-Volume Stocks Amid Earnings Woes

Aflac (AFL) traded 0.37% higher on Aug. 5, 2025, with a daily trading volume of $290 million, up 45.35% from the prior day. The insurer reported a 66.7% year-over-year decline in Q2 net earnings to $599 million, or $1.11 per diluted share, amid $421 million in net investment losses versus $696 million in gains in Q2 2024. Total revenues fell 17.6% to $4.2 billion, driven by weaker investment returns and foreign exchange impacts.

Japan operations saw 23.2% growth in new annualized premium sales to ¥20.7 billion ($143 million), fueled by the Miraito cancer insurance product. However, pretax adjusted earnings in yen dropped 15% to ¥114.3 billion due to declining revenues and higher expenses. U.S. operations reported 2.7% higher net earned premiums to $1.5 billion and 3.4% growth in new sales, supported by group life and disability products. Shareholders’ equity rose 9.6% to $27.2 billion, with $829 million in share repurchases during the quarter.

Management emphasized stable core operations and a 16.4% adjusted return on equity excluding foreign currency effects. A $0.58 per-share dividend was declared for Q3. Despite investment headwinds, Aflac maintained its focus on long-term value creation through product innovation and disciplined capital management.

A backtest of a strategy buying the top 500 high-volume stocks and holding for one day generated a 166.71% return from 2022 to 2025, outperforming the 29.18% benchmark by 137.53%. This highlights liquidity-driven strategies' potential in volatile markets, as high-volume stocks often reflect strong investor interest and short-term momentum.