American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) Price Target Raised to $153.00

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) had its target price raised by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $148.00 to $153.00 in a research note published on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a market perform rating on the insurance provider’s stock.

AFG has been the topic of several other research reports. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of American Financial Group from $158.00 to $173.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of American Financial Group from $140.00 to $156.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of American Financial Group in a research report on Thursday, June 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 MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $156.00.

American Financial Group Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of AFG stock opened at $145.56 on Tuesday. American Financial Group has a 1-year low of $123.09 and a 1-year high of $150.02. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $139.79 and its 200 day moving average price is $133.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 0.49 and a quick ratio of 0.49. The company has a market cap of $12.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.72 and a beta of 0.62.

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 will post 11.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Financial Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 24th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 15th were given a dividend of $0.88 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 15th. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. American Financial Group’s payout ratio is currently 30.77%.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Financial Group

In related news, insider David Lawrence Thompson, Jr. sold 11,370 shares of American Financial Group stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.05, for a total transaction of $1,535,518.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 584,098 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $78,882,434.90. The trade was a 1.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Michelle A. Gillis sold 2,247 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $139.00, for a total transaction of $312,333.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 13,135 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,825,765. This trade represents a 14.61% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 16,430 shares of company stock worth $2,255,061. 16.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of American Financial Group

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Steph & Co. raised its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 11.5% during the first quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 787 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $101,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in American Financial Group by 4.4% during the first quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,975 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $252,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the period. Valmark Advisers Inc. boosted its holdings in American Financial Group by 1.0% in the first quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. now owns 8,307 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,061,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp boosted its holdings in American Financial Group by 3.0% in the first quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp now owns 3,061 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $391,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC grew its position in American Financial Group by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 4,546 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $621,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the period. 64.37% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About American Financial Group

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.