American Financial Group, Inc. $AFG Stock Holdings Lifted by Bahl & Gaynor Inc.

Bahl & Gaynor Inc. lifted its holdings in American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) by 10.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 645,466 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after buying an additional 59,715 shares during the quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc.’s holdings in American Financial Group were worth $84,776,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of AFG. Private Trust Co. NA lifted its position in shares of American Financial Group by 144.3% in the 1st quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 215 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 127 shares during the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd bought a new position in shares of American Financial Group in the 1st quarter worth about $34,000. Natixis bought a new position in shares of American Financial Group in the 4th quarter worth about $47,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of American Financial Group in the 4th quarter worth about $53,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in American Financial Group in the 1st quarter valued at about $55,000. 64.37% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AFG has been the topic of several recent research reports. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on shares of American Financial Group from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, August 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on shares of American Financial Group from $127.00 to $124.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of American Financial Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, American Financial Group has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $136.75.

Insider Transactions at American Financial Group

In other American Financial Group news, Director Stephen Craig Lindner, Jr. sold 10,000 shares of American Financial Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $134.31, for a total value of $1,343,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 326,730 shares in the company, valued at $43,883,106.30. The trade was a 2.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 17.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

American Financial Group Stock Up 1.2%

AFG stock opened at $134.6320 on Friday. American Financial Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $114.73 and a 52 week high of $150.19. The company has a market capitalization of $11.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.79 and a beta of 0.74. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $127.04 and its two-hundred day moving average is $125.92. The company has a current ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The insurance provider reported $2.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $1.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.77 billion. American Financial Group had a net margin of 9.21% and a return on equity of 17.41%. The business’s revenue was up 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.56 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 10.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 15th were paid a $0.80 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, July 15th. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. American Financial Group’s payout ratio is 35.16%.

About American Financial Group

American Financial Group, Inc, an insurance holding company, provides specialty property and casualty insurance products in the United States. The company offers property and transportation insurance products, such as physical damage and liability coverage for buses and trucks, inland and ocean marine, agricultural-related products, and other commercial property and specialty transportation coverages; specialty casualty insurance, including primarily excess and surplus, executive and professional liability, general liability, umbrella and excess liability, and specialty coverage in targeted markets, as well as customized programs for small to mid-sized businesses and workers’ compensation insurance; and specialty financial insurance products comprising risk management insurance programs for lending and leasing institutions, fidelity and surety products, and trade credit insurance.