American Financial Group, Inc. $AFG Position Boosted by American Century Companies Inc.

Key Points

• American Century Companies Inc. has increased its stake in American Financial Group, Inc. by purchasing an additional 26,416 shares, bringing its total ownership to 148,257 shares, worth $19.47 million.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.80 per share, equating to an annualized dividend yield of 2.4% and a dividend payout ratio of 35.16%.
• American Financial Group's latest financial results showed an EPS of $2.14, surpassing analyst expectations, albeit with a slight revenue decline compared to the previous year.

American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in shares of American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG - Free Report) by 21.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 148,257 shares of the insurance provider's stock after buying an additional 26,416 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. owned 0.18% of American Financial Group worth $19,472,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in AFG. American Financial Group Inc. 401 K Retirement & Savings Plan boosted its stake in American Financial Group by 0.9% in the first quarter. American Financial Group Inc. 401 K Retirement & Savings Plan now owns 2,616,928 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $343,707,000 after buying an additional 23,228 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of American Financial Group by 395.5% in the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,520,714 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $331,071,000 after buying an additional 2,012,027 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of American Financial Group by 1.5% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 983,398 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $129,147,000 after purchasing an additional 14,265 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in American Financial Group by 35.8% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 802,069 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $109,827,000 after buying an additional 211,630 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Boston Trust Walden Corp increased its stake in shares of American Financial Group by 8.8% in the first quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 503,221 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $66,093,000 after purchasing an additional 40,822 shares in the last quarter. 64.37% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Financial Group

In other news, Director Stephen Craig Lindner, Jr. sold 10,000 shares of American Financial Group 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 owned 326,730 shares in the company, valued at approximately $43,883,106.30. This trade represents a 2.97% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 17.40% of the company's stock.

American Financial Group Stock Performance

American Financial Group stock traded up $0.68 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $134.27. 422,276 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 446,653. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $127.45 and its 200-day moving average price is $126.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.75 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.47 and a quick ratio of 0.47. American Financial Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $114.73 and a 1 year high of $150.19.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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 analysts' expectations of $1.77 billion. American Financial Group had a return on equity of 17.41% and a net margin of 9.21%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.56 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 10.5 EPS for the current fiscal 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. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, July 15th. American Financial Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 35.16%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen raised American Financial Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target 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. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on shares of American Financial Group from $127.00 to $124.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $136.75.

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.