Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC Buys 2,012 Shares of American Financial Group, Inc. $AFG

Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in shares of American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) by 23.6% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 10,520 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,012 shares during the quarter. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in American Financial Group were worth $1,328,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of AFG. Xponance Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 11,882 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,561,000 after buying an additional 80 shares during the period. Astoria Portfolio Advisors LLC. lifted its position in American Financial Group by 4.9% during the 1st quarter. Astoria Portfolio Advisors LLC. now owns 1,727 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $222,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co lifted its position in American Financial Group by 4.6% during the 2nd quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 2,356 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $297,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its holdings in American Financial Group by 15.6% during the second quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 776 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $98,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares during the period. Finally, CX Institutional increased its stake in shares of American Financial Group by 4.5% in the second quarter. CX Institutional now owns 2,839 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $358,000 after purchasing an additional 122 shares during the period. 64.37% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on American Financial Group from $127.00 to $124.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, August 12th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on American Financial Group from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, August 11th. Wall Street Zen raised American Financial Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, September 13th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of American Financial Group in a report on Friday. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $136.75.

American Financial Group Price Performance

AFG opened at $132.19 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. American Financial Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $114.73 and a 12 month high of $150.19. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $138.69 and a 200 day simple moving average of $130.28. The stock has a market cap of $11.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.53 and a beta of 0.74.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The insurance provider reported $2.14 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.08 by $0.06. American Financial Group had a net margin of 9.21% and a return on equity of 17.41%. The business had revenue of $1.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.77 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.56 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 10.5 EPS for the current year.

American Financial Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 24th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 15th were given a $0.88 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, October 15th. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. This is an increase from American Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.80. American Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 38.68%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Stephen Craig Lindner, Jr. sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $134.31, for a total value of $1,343,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 326,730 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $43,883,106.30. This represents a 2.97% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 17.40% of the company’s stock.

American Financial Group 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.