Russell Investments Group Ltd. Has $6.68 Million Holdings in American Financial Group, Inc. $AFG

Russell Investments Group Ltd. decreased its holdings in American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) by 15.2% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 52,972 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 9,501 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned 0.06% of American Financial Group worth $6,675,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AFG. Advisors Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 3.2% in the second quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,640 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $333,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd purchased a new stake in American Financial Group in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,073,000. Prudential Financial Inc. lifted its stake in American Financial Group by 16.5% during the 2nd quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 7,690 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $971,000 after acquiring an additional 1,087 shares in the last quarter. Vestor Capital LLC lifted its stake in American Financial Group by 64,631.3% during the 2nd quarter. Vestor Capital LLC now owns 388,388 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $49,018,000 after acquiring an additional 387,788 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in American Financial Group by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,565,424 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $323,782,000 after acquiring an additional 44,710 shares during the last quarter. 64.37% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Financial Group

In other news, CFO Brian S. Hertzman sold 1,777 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $142.51, for a total value of $253,240.27. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 11,300 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,610,363. The trade was a 13.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 17.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently commented on AFG. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of American Financial Group in a report on Monday. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of American Financial Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, September 13th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating and set a $142.00 target price on shares of American Financial Group in a research report on Tuesday, November 11th. Piper Sandler upped their target price on American Financial Group from $130.00 to $139.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, November 6th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on American Financial Group from $127.00 to $124.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, American Financial Group has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $135.00.

American Financial Group Trading Up 1.2%

NYSE:AFG opened at $133.34 on Friday. American Financial Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $114.73 and a 12 month high of $150.02. The company has a current ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $137.95 and its 200 day moving average is $132.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.12 billion, a PE ratio of 14.01 and a beta of 0.69.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The insurance provider reported $2.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.35 by $0.34. American Financial Group had a return on equity of 18.05% and a net margin of 9.66%.The business had revenue of $2.33 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.02 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.31 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.4% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 10.5 earnings per share for the current year.

American Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a special dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 26th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 17th were given a dividend of $2.00 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 17th. American Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.97%.

American Financial Group Company Profile

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.