Intech Investment Management LLC Grows Stock Holdings in American Financial Group, Inc. $AFG

Intech Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) by 42.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 16,052 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,786 shares during the quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC’s holdings in American Financial Group were worth $2,194,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Global Retirement Partners LLC raised its stake in American Financial Group by 904.8% during the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 211 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC raised its stake in American Financial Group by 87.7% during the fourth quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 259 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 121 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its stake in American Financial Group by 165.0% during the third quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 273 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares in the last quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new stake in American Financial Group during the third quarter valued at $44,000. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. raised its stake in American Financial Group by 332.9% during the third quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 368 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 283 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.37% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of American Financial Group from $155.00 to $158.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped 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 note on Wednesday, March 25th. Piper Sandler increased their target price on shares of American Financial Group from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of American Financial Group from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Monday, March 16th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, American Financial Group presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $145.00.

American Financial Group Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of AFG opened at $129.02 on Thursday. American Financial Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $121.75 and a twelve month high of $150.02. The company has a market cap of $10.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.26 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a current ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $131.37 and its 200-day simple moving average is $132.16.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The insurance provider reported $2.47 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.54 by ($0.07). American Financial Group had a net margin of 10.76% and a return on equity of 19.50%. The firm had revenue of $1.85 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.70 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.81 EPS. The company’s revenue was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 11.37 EPS for the current year.

American Financial Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 24th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 15th were paid a $0.88 dividend. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, April 15th. American Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 33.46%.

American Financial Group Profile

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.