American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) Position Increased by Victory Capital Management Inc.

Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) by 5.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,838,501 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after buying an additional 191,269 shares during the period. American Financial Group comprises approximately 0.5% of Victory Capital Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest position. Victory Capital Management Inc. owned approximately 4.58% of American Financial Group worth $456,359,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in American Financial Group by 1.0% in 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 during the period. FMR LLC boosted its stake in shares of American Financial Group by 16.1% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 4,710,065 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $525,973,000 after buying an additional 654,442 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in shares of 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 valued at $93,632,000 after buying an additional 56,267 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in shares of American Financial Group by 4.0% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 635,387 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $70,954,000 after buying an additional 24,630 shares during the period. Finally, Bahl & Gaynor Inc. boosted its stake in shares of American Financial Group by 63.1% during the 4th quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. now owns 423,162 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $50,310,000 after buying an additional 163,671 shares during the period. 64.37% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Financial Group

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AFG has been the subject of a number of research reports. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of American Financial Group from $139.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 25th. Piper Sandler reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $129.00 target price on shares of American Financial Group in a report on Monday, April 1st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $133.50.

American Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of American Financial Group stock traded up $1.31 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $129.06. 57,170 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 331,141. 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 firm’s fifty day moving average price is $129.84 and its 200 day moving average price is $120.87. American Financial Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $105.22 and a twelve month high of $137.71. The company has a market cap of $10.82 billion, a PE ratio of 12.71 and a beta of 0.79.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 7th. The insurance provider reported $2.84 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.81 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $1.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.67 billion. American Financial Group had a net margin of 10.89% and a return on equity of 22.14%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.99 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 10.99 earnings per share for the current year.

American Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 25th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 15th were given a $0.71 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 12th. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.20%. American Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.26%.

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.