Aflac’s second quarter saw a strong positive market reaction, reflecting the company’s solid operational performance and revenue growth above Wall Street expectations. Management attributed the results largely to the success of the new Miraito cancer insurance product in Japan, which spurred a 53% increase in cancer policy sales and contributed to a 23.2% year-over-year sales rise in the region. In the U.S., momentum in group life, disability, and network dental products supported steady premium growth, while strategic underwriting and expense management helped preserve margins. CEO Dan Amos emphasized, “Our ability to maintain strong premium persistency is a testament to our strategy, Aflac’s reputation and our customer recognition of the value of our products.”

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While we enjoy listening to the management's commentary, our favorite part of earnings calls are the analyst questions. Those are unscripted and can often highlight topics that management teams would rather avoid or topics where the answer is complicated. Here is what has caught our attention.

Our Top 5 Analyst Questions From Aflac’s Q2 Earnings Call

• Ryan Joel Krueger (KBW): Asked about the sustainability of Miraito-driven sales growth. Koichiro Yoshizumi, Head of Sales in Japan, said Miraito’s flexible design and new service features should maintain momentum beyond typical launch cycles, with continued appeal to both new and existing customers.
• Suneet Laxman L. Kamath (Jefferies): Queried about Aflac’s approach to regulatory capital models (ESR) in Japan. CFO Max Broden explained Aflac uses the regulatory model with undertaking specific parameters for more accurate business risk measurement, expecting approval of the method by 2026.
• Jamminder Singh Bhullar (JPMorgan): Questioned sluggish U.S. sales growth and future expectations. Virgil Raynard Miller, President of Aflac U.S., said deliberate underwriting changes have prioritized persistency over volume, but expects a stronger second half driven by group and dental business.
• Elyse Beth Greenspan (Wells Fargo): Asked about Japan’s expense ratio and capital deployment timing. Broden noted technology spending will rise in the second half, but Aflac is not in a rush to deploy excess holding company cash due to favorable yield curve dynamics.
• John Bakewell Barnidge (Piper Sandler): Inquired about product refresh cycles with the new bundling strategy. Yoshizumi stated cancer insurance refreshes occur on a three-year cycle, medical on a two-year basis, subject to regulatory approval.

Catalysts in Upcoming Quarters

In upcoming quarters, the StockStory team will monitor (1) the sustained sales momentum of Miraito and potential impact of new medical product launches in Japan, (2) the scaling and profitability of U.S. group and dental benefits businesses, and (3) progress in digital transformation initiatives, particularly AI-enabled customer service and cost efficiency. Persistent capital discipline and evolving regulatory developments will also be critical signposts.

Aflac currently trades at $103.61, up from $98.96 just before the earnings. Is there an opportunity in the stock?See for yourself in our full research report (it’s free).

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