Ameriprise Financial Inc. Has $43.03 Million Stock Holdings in American Financial Group, Inc. $AFG

Key Points

• Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its position in American Financial Group, Inc. by 112.5% during Q1, owning 327,621 shares worth approximately $43 million.
• Institutional ownership of American Financial Group is significant, with recent increases in investments from several firms including Northern Trust Corp by 35.8%.
• The company's stock has a current price of $136.62, with a reported Q2 EPS of $2.14, surpassing estimates by $0.06.

Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its holdings in shares of American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG - Free Report) by 112.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 327,621 shares of the insurance provider's stock after purchasing an additional 173,452 shares during the quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. owned approximately 0.39% of American Financial Group worth $43,030,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in shares of American Financial Group by 35.8% during the 4th 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. Utah Retirement Systems lifted its position in American Financial Group by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Utah Retirement Systems now owns 11,917 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $1,632,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Freestone Grove Partners LP bought a new stake in shares of American Financial Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $10,876,000. Jane Street Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 759.1% during the fourth quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 17,181 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $2,353,000 after acquiring an additional 15,181 shares during the period. Finally, Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV acquired a new position in shares of American Financial Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $662,000. 64.37% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at American Financial Group

In related news, Director Stephen Craig Lindner, Jr. sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the director directly owned 326,730 shares in the company, valued at $43,883,106.30. This represents a 2.97% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 17.40% of the company's stock.

American Financial Group Price Performance

American Financial Group stock traded down $0.61 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $136.27. 31,009 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 495,473. The company has a current ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. American Financial Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $114.73 and a twelve month high of $150.19. The company has a market cap of $11.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.98 and a beta of 0.73. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $128.65 and a two-hundred day moving average of $126.38.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The insurance provider reported $2.14 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $1.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.77 billion. American Financial Group had a net margin of 9.21% and a return on equity of 17.41%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.56 EPS. Equities analysts expect that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 10.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Financial Group Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on AFG. Wall Street Zen cut American Financial Group from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced 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 report on Tuesday, August 12th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised 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 report on Monday, August 11th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target 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.