American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) Receives Average Recommendation of “Hold” from Brokerages

Shares of American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the five ratings firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $156.00.

A number of brokerages have commented on AFG. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of American Financial Group from $158.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on American Financial Group from $148.00 to $153.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of American Financial Group from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on American Financial Group from $140.00 to $156.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, August 10th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of American Financial Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, September 12th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Mark A. Weiss sold 2,813 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.76, for a total transaction of $407,209.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 6,648 shares in the company, valued at approximately $962,364.48. This represents a 29.73% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Brian S. Hertzman sold 950 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $142.87, for a total transaction of $135,726.50. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 11,123 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,589,143.01. The trade was a 7.87% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 16.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of American Financial Group

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of AFG. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System purchased a new stake in American Financial Group during the 1st quarter worth approximately $2,567,000. First Trust Advisors LP raised its holdings in American Financial Group by 433.2% in the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 316,974 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $40,481,000 after acquiring an additional 257,522 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia acquired a new stake in American Financial Group in the second quarter valued at approximately $6,760,000. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd lifted its stake in American Financial Group by 281.1% in the first quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd now owns 28,243 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $3,607,000 after acquiring an additional 20,832 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in American Financial Group by 19.0% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,506,510 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $192,395,000 after acquiring an additional 240,509 shares in the last quarter. 64.37% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Financial Group Stock Performance

NYSE:AFG opened at $138.26 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $142.99 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $136.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.46 billion, a PE ratio of 12.09 and a beta of 0.60. American Financial Group has a 52-week low of $123.09 and a 52-week high of $150.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a current ratio of 0.49.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The insurance provider reported $2.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.32 by $0.50. The company had revenue of $2.03 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.85 billion. American Financial Group had a return on equity of 20.35% and a net margin of 11.51%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.14 EPS. Analysts forecast that American Financial Group will post 12.17 EPS for the current year.

American Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 24th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 15th were given a dividend of $0.88 per share. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 15th. American Financial Group’s payout ratio is presently 30.77%.

American Financial Group Company Profile

American Financial Group, Inc (NYSE:AFG) is an insurance holding company headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio. Through its Great American Insurance Group subsidiaries, the company primarily underwrites specialty property and casualty insurance and sells annuity products.

Its property and casualty operations serve businesses, organizations and individuals through specialized products that include commercial transportation, agricultural and crop insurance, workers’ compensation, casualty coverage, financial institution insurance, surety and fidelity bonds, marine insurance, travel insurance and public-sector coverage.