LSV Asset Management Lowers Holdings in American Financial Group, Inc. $AFG

LSV Asset Management decreased its holdings in shares of American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) by 9.9% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 538,086 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 58,900 shares during the quarter. LSV Asset Management’s holdings in American Financial Group were worth $67,912,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of American Financial Group by 10.8% during the 1st quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 59,633 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $7,832,000 after purchasing an additional 5,799 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its stake in American Financial Group by 72.5% during the second quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 57,894 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $7,249,000 after buying an additional 24,334 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC boosted its stake in American Financial Group by 116.5% during the first quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 14,821 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,947,000 after buying an additional 7,975 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. increased its position in shares of American Financial Group by 133.7% during the first quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 49,064 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $6,444,000 after acquiring an additional 28,068 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Focus Partners Wealth raised its stake in shares of American Financial Group by 50.5% in the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 41,374 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $5,434,000 after acquiring an additional 13,886 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.37% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at American Financial Group

In other American Financial Group 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 transaction of $253,240.27. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 11,300 shares in the company, valued at $1,610,363. The trade was a 13.59% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Stephen Craig Lindner, Jr. sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $134.31, for a total transaction of $1,343,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 326,730 shares in the company, valued at approximately $43,883,106.30. This represents a 2.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders own 17.40% of the company’s stock.

American Financial Group Trading Down 2.5%

AFG opened at $138.91 on Tuesday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $139.11 and a 200 day moving average price of $131.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.47 and a quick ratio of 0.47. American Financial Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $114.73 and a 12 month high of $150.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.26 and a beta of 0.78.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The insurance provider reported $2.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.35 by $0.34. The company had revenue of $2.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.02 billion. American Financial Group had a return on equity of 17.41% and a net margin of 9.21%.American Financial Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.31 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 10.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a special dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 26th. Investors of record on Monday, November 17th will be paid a $2.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 17th. American Financial Group’s payout ratio is currently 36.97%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AFG has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of American Financial Group in a research report on Thursday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered 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. Wall Street Zen upgraded American Financial Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report 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 note on Tuesday, November 11th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $135.00.

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.