American Financial Group, Inc. $AFG Shares Sold by Vanguard Group Inc.

Vanguard Group Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) by 1.3% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 7,297,408 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 94,380 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned 0.09% of American Financial Group worth $997,410,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in American Financial Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $343,000. A&I Financial Services LLC lifted its position in American Financial Group by 7.7% during the fourth quarter. A&I Financial Services LLC now owns 5,029 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $687,000 after buying an additional 360 shares in the last quarter. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. lifted its position in American Financial Group by 2.9% during the fourth quarter. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. now owns 10,367 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,417,000 after buying an additional 295 shares in the last quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in American Financial Group by 15.8% during the fourth quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,833 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $251,000 after buying an additional 250 shares in the last quarter. Finally, M&T Bank Corp lifted its position in American Financial Group by 20,131.5% during the fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 637,090 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $87,077,000 after buying an additional 633,941 shares in the last quarter. 64.37% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Financial Group Trading Down 1.4%

AFG opened at $131.37 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.49 and a beta of 0.65. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $129.81 and its 200-day moving average is $132.51. American Financial Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $120.52 and a 52-week high of $150.02. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The insurance provider reported $2.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.54 by ($0.07). American Financial Group had a net margin of 10.76% and a return on equity of 19.49%. The firm had revenue of $1.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.70 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.81 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 10.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 24th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 15th were paid a dividend of $0.88 per share. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, April 15th. American Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 33.46%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on AFG. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on shares of American Financial Group from $129.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of American Financial Group from $134.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 25th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of American Financial Group from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Monday, March 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of American Financial Group from $160.00 to $155.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $143.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other American Financial Group news, CFO Brian S. Hertzman sold 1,663 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $133.70, for a total transaction of $222,343.10. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 12,073 shares in the company, valued at $1,614,160.10. This trade represents a 12.11% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 16.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.