Wall Street Zen Upgrades American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) to Hold

Key Points

• American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) has been upgraded from a "sell" to a "hold" rating by Wall Street Zen, with a current consensus price target of $136.75.
• Jefferies Financial Group raised its price target on the stock to $130.00, while Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered theirs to $124.00, indicating mixed analyst sentiment.
• The company reported $2.14 earnings per share in its latest quarter, surpassing analysts' expectations, although revenue of $1.65 billion was slightly below the consensus estimate.

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG - Free Report) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a report released on Saturday morning.

AFG has been the subject of a number of other reports. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of American Financial Group from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, August 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on shares of American Financial Group from $127.00 to $124.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, August 12th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat.com, American Financial Group has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $136.75.

American Financial Group Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of NYSE AFG traded down $0.55 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $139.31. 486,313 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 401,971. The company has a quick ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The company has a market cap of $11.62 billion, a PE ratio of 15.31 and a beta of 0.73. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $131.03 and a 200-day moving average price of $127.42. American Financial Group has a 12 month low of $114.73 and a 12 month high of $150.19.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The insurance provider reported $2.14 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $1.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.77 billion. American Financial Group had a net margin of 9.21% and a return on equity of 17.41%. American Financial Group's revenue was up 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.56 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that American Financial Group will post 10.5 EPS for the current year.

American Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 15th were issued a $0.80 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, July 15th. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. American Financial Group's payout ratio is presently 35.16%.

Insider Transactions at American Financial Group

In other American Financial Group news, Director Stephen Craig Lindner, Jr. sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $134.31, for a total value of $1,343,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 326,730 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $43,883,106.30. The trade was a 2.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 17.40% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Xponance Inc. lifted its holdings in American Financial Group by 0.7% in the first quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 11,882 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $1,561,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the period. Astoria Portfolio Advisors LLC. lifted its holdings in American Financial Group by 4.9% in the first quarter. Astoria Portfolio Advisors LLC. now owns 1,727 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $222,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares during the period. Advisors Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in American Financial Group by 3.2% in the second quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,640 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $333,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co grew its holdings in American Financial Group by 4.6% in the second quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 2,356 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $297,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the period. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. grew its holdings in American Financial Group by 15.6% in the second quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 776 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $98,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the period. 64.37% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.