Bahl & Gaynor Inc. Has $50.31 Million Holdings in American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG)

Bahl & Gaynor Inc. increased its holdings in shares of American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) by 63.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 423,162 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after buying an additional 163,671 shares during the quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. owned 0.51% of American Financial Group worth $50,310,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. FMR LLC increased its holdings in American Financial Group by 16.1% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 4,710,065 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $525,973,000 after purchasing an additional 654,442 shares in the last quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp increased its holdings in American Financial Group by 51.8% during the 3rd quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 398,057 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $44,451,000 after purchasing an additional 135,767 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in American Financial Group by 1,804.5% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 96,652 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $11,491,000 after purchasing an additional 91,577 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in American Financial Group by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 8,288,375 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $925,563,000 after purchasing an additional 81,293 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in American Financial Group by 7.2% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 838,468 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $93,632,000 after purchasing an additional 56,267 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.37% of the company’s stock.

American Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AFG opened at $127.34 on Friday. American Financial Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $105.22 and a fifty-two week high of $137.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 0.47 and a quick ratio of 0.47. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.67 and a beta of 0.79. The business has a 50-day moving average of $129.68 and a 200-day moving average of $120.47.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 7th. The insurance provider reported $2.84 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.81 by $0.03. American Financial Group had a return on equity of 22.14% and a net margin of 10.89%. The business had revenue of $1.73 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.67 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.99 earnings per share. American Financial Group’s quarterly revenue was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 10.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 25th. Investors of record on Monday, April 15th were issued a dividend of $0.71 per share. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.23%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 12th. American Financial Group’s payout ratio is currently 28.26%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Piper Sandler restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $129.00 price objective on shares of American Financial Group in a report on Monday, April 1st. Citigroup raised their price objective on American Financial Group from $139.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 25th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $133.50.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director James E. Evans sold 2,274 shares of American Financial Group stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $128.64, for a total transaction of $292,527.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 105,302 shares in the company, valued at $13,546,049.28. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other American Financial Group news, VP Mark A. Weiss sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $127.06, for a total transaction of $317,650.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 7,553 shares in the company, valued at $959,684.18. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director James E. Evans sold 2,274 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $128.64, for a total transaction of $292,527.36. Following the sale, the director now owns 105,302 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,546,049.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 14,843 shares of company stock worth $1,854,746. Company insiders own 14.50% of the company’s stock.

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.