Capstone Investment Advisors LLC Takes Position in American Financial Group, Inc. $AFG

Capstone Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 6,744 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $944,000.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AFG. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in American Financial Group in the 2nd quarter worth $1,079,329,000. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of American Financial Group during the fourth quarter valued at about $114,661,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in shares of American Financial Group during the second quarter valued at about $102,590,000. Vestor Capital LLC boosted its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 100,006.8% during the fourth quarter. Vestor Capital LLC now owns 600,641 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $82,096,000 after purchasing an additional 600,041 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new stake in shares of American Financial Group during the second quarter worth about $53,939,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.37% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AFG has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Piper Sandler upped their price target on American Financial Group from $140.00 to $156.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on American Financial Group from $158.00 to $173.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Weiss Ratings raised American Financial Group from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of American Financial Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, August 15th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of American Financial Group from $148.00 to $153.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $156.00.

Insider Activity at American Financial Group

In related news, SVP Michelle A. Gillis sold 2,247 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $139.00, for a total value of $312,333.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 13,135 shares in the company, valued at $1,825,765. This trade represents a 14.61% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, VP Mark A. Weiss sold 2,813 shares of American Financial Group stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.76, for a total value of $407,209.88. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 6,648 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $962,364.48. This represents a 29.73% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 16,430 shares of company stock valued at $2,255,061 in the last three months. 16.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

American Financial Group Stock Down 1.7%

Shares of AFG stock opened at $142.55 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $142.11 and its 200 day moving average price is $134.86. American Financial Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $123.09 and a 1-year high of $150.02. The company has a market cap of $11.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.46 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 0.49 and a quick ratio of 0.49.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The insurance provider reported $2.82 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.32 by $0.50. The company had revenue of $2.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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 revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.14 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 12.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Financial Group Dividend Announcement

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

American Financial Group Company Profile

American Financial Group, Inc (NYSE: AFG) is a diversified holding company primarily engaged in property and casualty insurance and reinsurance. Through its flagship subsidiary, Great American Insurance Company, the firm underwrites a broad range of specialty insurance products for commercial and industrial clients, including inland marine, excess and surplus lines, executive liability, and environmental liability coverage. In addition, American Financial Group offers supplemental accident and health insurance and assumes reinsurance risks from other insurers, helping to diversify its underwriting portfolio.

The company traces its roots to 1946, when it was founded by Carl Lindner, Sr.