Aflac Inc. (AFL) witnessed a significant plummet of 5.02% in its stock price on Thursday, underperforming the market as the company reported weaker-than-expected fourth-quarter 2024 earnings, primarily due to lower premiums in its Japan segment.

The insurance giant reported adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of $1.56 for the fourth quarter, missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 3.7%. While the bottom line increased 24.8% year-over-year, the company's revenues of $4.3 billion also fell short of analysts' expectations by 2.7%.

The earnings miss was largely attributed to the company's Japan segment, where total net earned premiums declined by 8.2% year-over-year to $1.7 billion. This decrease was primarily driven by limited pay products attaining paid-up status and the implementation of a reinsurance transaction earlier. Furthermore, new annualized premium sales in the Japan segment, although improving by 9% year-over-year, were not enough to offset the impact of lower net premiums earned.