American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) Stock Rating Upgraded by Wall Street Zen

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Saturday.

A number of other brokerages also recently commented on AFG. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on American Financial Group from $140.00 to $156.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Weiss Ratings raised American Financial Group from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on American Financial Group from $158.00 to $173.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of American Financial Group from $148.00 to $153.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, American Financial Group currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $156.00.

American Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of AFG opened at $146.15 on Friday. American Financial Group has a 1 year low of $123.09 and a 1 year high of $150.02. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $140.07 and its 200 day simple moving average is $133.90. The company has a market capitalization of $12.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.78 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a current ratio of 0.49.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The insurance provider reported $2.82 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.32 by $0.50. American Financial Group had a net margin of 11.51% and a return on equity of 20.35%. The firm had revenue of $2.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.85 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.14 EPS. American Financial Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that American Financial Group will post 11.73 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at American Financial Group

In other news, VP Mark A. Weiss sold 2,813 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.76, for a total value of $407,209.88. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 6,648 shares in the company, valued at $962,364.48. This trade represents a 29.73% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider David Lawrence Thompson, Jr. sold 11,370 shares of American Financial Group stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.05, for a total value of $1,535,518.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 584,098 shares in the company, valued at $78,882,434.90. This represents a 1.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 16,430 shares of company stock worth $2,255,061. 16.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of American Financial Group

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in American Financial Group during the second quarter worth approximately $1,079,329,000. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of American Financial Group in the 4th quarter valued at $114,661,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new position in shares of American Financial Group in the 2nd quarter valued at $102,590,000. M&T Bank Corp lifted its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 20,131.5% during the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 637,090 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $87,077,000 after acquiring an additional 633,941 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vestor Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 100,006.8% during the 4th quarter. Vestor Capital LLC now owns 600,641 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $82,096,000 after acquiring an additional 600,041 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.37% of the company’s stock.

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.