iSAM Funds UK Ltd Takes Position in American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG)

iSAM Funds UK Ltd purchased a new stake in American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 7,199 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $986,000.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 57.1% in the fourth quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 38,623 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $5,289,000 after purchasing an additional 14,045 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 151,771 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $20,782,000 after purchasing an additional 3,911 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 55.2% in the fourth quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 7,837 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,073,000 after purchasing an additional 2,789 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Financial Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $5,127,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 26.2% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 997,340 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $136,566,000 after purchasing an additional 207,285 shares in the last quarter. 64.37% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

American Financial Group Price Performance

NYSE:AFG opened at $127.12 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 0.53. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $126.23 and its 200 day simple moving average is $131.59. The company has a market cap of $10.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.03 and a beta of 0.72. American Financial Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $114.73 and a 52-week high of $150.19.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The insurance provider reported $1.81 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.17 by ($0.36). The firm had revenue of $1.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.74 billion. American Financial Group had a net margin of 10.66% and a return on equity of 20.30%. American Financial Group’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.76 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 10.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Financial Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 25th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 15th were paid a $0.80 dividend. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.52%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 15th. American Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 33.61%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on American Financial Group from $126.00 to $125.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 9th.

Insider Activity at American Financial Group

In related news, Director Gregory G. Joseph purchased 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $121.00 per share, for a total transaction of $363,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 57,477 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,954,717. This represents a 5.51% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 17.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.