American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) Given New $124.00 Price Target at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods

Key Points

• Analysts at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods have lowered the price target for American Financial Group from $127.00 to $124.00, indicating a potential downside of 3.36% from the stock's previous close.
• Despite the downgrade, Jefferies Financial Group recently boosted their price target to $130.00 and assigned a “hold” rating, contributing to a consensus target price of $136.75.
• A recent earnings report showed American Financial Group had an EPS of $2.14, exceeding expectations, but revenue fell short at $1.65 billion compared to estimates of $1.77 billion.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG - Get Free Report) had its target price decreased by research analysts at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $127.00 to $124.00 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a "market perform" rating on the insurance provider's stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods' target price points to a potential downside of 7.05% from the stock's current price.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on AFG. Wall Street Zen upgraded American Financial Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on American Financial Group from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $136.75.

American Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of American Financial Group stock traded down $0.39 on Tuesday, hitting $133.41. The company's stock had a trading volume of 412,242 shares, compared to its average volume of 482,254. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a current ratio of 0.47. American Financial Group has a 1 year low of $114.73 and a 1 year high of $150.19. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $126.02 and a 200-day moving average price of $126.10. The company has a market capitalization of $11.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.66 and a beta of 0.74.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results 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 return on equity of 17.41% and a net margin of 9.21%. 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 firm earned $2.56 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that American Financial Group will post 10.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Financial Group

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in AFG. LPL Financial LLC grew its position in American Financial Group by 8.4% in the fourth quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 6,846 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $937,000 after acquiring an additional 533 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in American Financial Group by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,052 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $692,000 after acquiring an additional 164 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its position in American Financial Group by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 53,834 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $7,372,000 after acquiring an additional 2,474 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC purchased a new position in American Financial Group in the fourth quarter worth approximately $5,025,000. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in American Financial Group in the fourth quarter worth approximately $2,875,000. 64.37% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About American Financial Group

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.