Boston Trust Walden Corp Purchases 77,417 Shares of American Financial Group, Inc. $AFG

Key Points

• Boston Trust Walden Corp increased its holdings in American Financial Group, acquiring an additional 77,417 shares, raising its ownership to 580,638 shares, valued at approximately $73.3 million.
• American Financial Group announced a quarterly dividend increase from $0.80 to $0.88 per share, signaling positive growth and providing a dividend yield of 2.5%.
• The company reported earnings per share of $2.14 for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations, but noted a slight year-over-year revenue increase of 1.3% despite a decrease in EPS from the previous year.

Boston Trust Walden Corp lifted its position in shares of American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG - Free Report) by 15.4% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 580,638 shares of the insurance provider's stock after purchasing an additional 77,417 shares during the period. Boston Trust Walden Corp owned 0.69% of American Financial Group worth $73,282,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Private Trust Co. NA increased its stake in American Financial Group by 144.3% during the 1st quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 215 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 127 shares during the period. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd bought a new position in American Financial Group during the 1st quarter worth $34,000. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new position in American Financial Group during the 1st quarter worth $55,000. IFP Advisors Inc increased its stake in American Financial Group by 86.7% during the 2nd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 422 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $57,000 after acquiring an additional 196 shares during the period. Finally, Costello Asset Management INC bought a new position in American Financial Group during the 1st quarter worth $68,000. Institutional investors own 64.37% of the company's stock.

American Financial Group Trading Up 0.7%

NYSE AFG opened at $138.49 on Tuesday. 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 twelve month low of $114.73 and a twelve month high of $150.19. The company has a market cap of $11.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.22 and a beta of 0.74. The business's fifty day moving average is $138.05 and its 200 day moving average is $129.79.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The insurance provider reported $2.14 earnings per share 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 company had revenue of $1.65 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.77 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.56 EPS. American Financial Group's revenue for the quarter was up 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 10.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Financial Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 24th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.88 per share. This is a positive change from American Financial Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.80. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 15th. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.5%. American Financial Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 35.16%.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Financial Group

In related news, Director Stephen Craig Lindner, Jr. sold 10,000 shares of the firm'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 sale, the director owned 326,730 shares of the company's stock, valued at $43,883,106.30. This trade represents a 2.97% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 17.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AFG has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective 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. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of American Financial Group in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on American Financial Group from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, August 11th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded American Financial Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, September 13th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, American Financial Group currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target 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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding AFG? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.