American Financial Group, Inc. $AFG Shares Sold by ProShare Advisors LLC

ProShare Advisors LLC reduced its stake in shares of American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) by 4.1% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 195,356 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 8,279 shares during the quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.24% of American Financial Group worth $26,717,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of AFG. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in shares of American Financial Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,079,329,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in shares of American Financial Group during the 2nd quarter valued at about $102,590,000. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new stake in American Financial Group in the 2nd quarter worth $53,939,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 337.1% during the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 431,144 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $55,061,000 after acquiring an additional 332,517 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of American Financial Group by 433.2% in the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 316,974 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $40,481,000 after buying an additional 257,522 shares in the last quarter. 64.37% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of AFG stock opened at $153.61 on Monday. 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, Inc. has a one year low of $123.09 and a one year high of $155.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.43 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $143.78 and a 200 day moving average price of $136.41.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The insurance provider reported $2.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 company had revenue of $2.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.85 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.14 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 12.29 EPS for the current year.

American Financial Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 23rd. Investors of record on Thursday, October 15th were paid a $0.97 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 15th. This represents a $3.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. This is a positive change from American Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.88. American Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 33.92%.

Insider Transactions at American Financial Group

In other American Financial Group news, VP Mark Weiss sold 2,813 shares of the business’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 owned 6,648 shares in the company, valued at $962,364.48. The trade was a 29.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Brian Hertzman sold 950 shares of American Financial Group stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $142.87, for a total transaction of $135,726.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 11,123 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,589,143.01. The trade was a 7.87% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 16.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AFG has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of American Financial Group from $175.00 to $166.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 12th. Piper Sandler increased their target price on American Financial Group from $140.00 to $156.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, August 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on shares of American Financial Group from $153.00 to $147.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 12th. Weiss Ratings raised American Financial Group from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of American Financial Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, October 17th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $152.75.

American Financial Group Profile

American Financial Group, Inc (NYSE:AFG) is an insurance holding company headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio. Through its Great American Insurance Group operations, the company primarily provides property and casualty insurance, with an emphasis on specialty commercial products and markets.

Its insurance offerings serve businesses, organizations and individuals across a range of industries. Product lines have included commercial property and liability coverage, workers’ compensation, transportation, agriculture and crop insurance, marine and other specialty risks.