Bahl & Gaynor Inc. Purchases 59,715 Shares of American Financial Group, Inc. $AFG

Key Points

• Bahl & Gaynor Inc. increased its stake in American Financial Group by 10.2%, acquiring 59,715 additional shares during the first quarter, bringing their total ownership to 645,466 shares valued at $84.8 million.
• American Financial Group reported $2.14 earnings per share for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations by $0.06, but its revenue of $1.65 billion fell short of the consensus estimate.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.80 per share, resulting in an annualized yield of 2.4% and a payout ratio of 35.16%.

Bahl & Gaynor Inc. lifted its position in shares of American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG - Free Report) by 10.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 645,466 shares of the insurance provider's stock after buying an additional 59,715 shares during the period. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. owned about 0.77% of American Financial Group worth $84,776,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Xponance Inc. raised its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 11,882 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $1,561,000 after buying an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Astoria Portfolio Advisors LLC. raised its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 4.9% during the 1st quarter. Astoria Portfolio Advisors LLC. now owns 1,727 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $222,000 after buying an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Utah Retirement Systems raised its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Utah Retirement Systems now owns 11,917 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $1,632,000 after buying an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA raised its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 144.3% during the 1st quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 215 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 127 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Johnson Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 4.9% during the 4th quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. now owns 3,101 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $423,000 after buying an additional 144 shares in the last quarter. 64.37% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Financial Group Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of AFG traded up $0.19 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $136.28. 142,261 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 498,326. The company has a quick ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. American Financial Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $114.73 and a 1 year high of $150.19. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.98 and a beta of 0.74. The business's 50-day moving average price is $127.73 and its 200-day moving average price is $126.07.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The insurance provider reported $2.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 firm had revenue of $1.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.77 billion. During the same period in the previous 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 forecast that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 10.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Financial Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 25th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 15th were paid a dividend of $0.80 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, July 15th. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. American Financial Group's payout ratio is 35.16%.

Insider Activity

In other 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 transaction of $1,343,100.00. Following 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 17.40% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AFG has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on American Financial Group from $127.00 to $124.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, August 12th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on 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, Wall Street Zen raised American Financial Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $136.75.

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.