Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI Takes $499,000 Position in American Financial Group, Inc. $AFG

Key Points

• Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI acquired a new stake in American Financial Group, purchasing 3,947 shares valued at approximately $499,000 in the second quarter.
• A number of significant investors, including Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. and AQR Capital Management LLC, dramatically increased their holdings in American Financial Group during the first quarter.
• American Financial Group is set to pay a quarterly dividend of $0.88 on October 24th, marking an increase from the previous dividend of $0.80.

Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI purchased a new stake in American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 3,947 shares of the insurance provider's stock, valued at approximately $499,000.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in American Financial Group by 395.5% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,520,714 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $331,071,000 after buying an additional 2,012,027 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in American Financial Group by 240.0% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 585,841 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $76,821,000 after buying an additional 413,516 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in American Financial Group during the 1st quarter worth $30,442,000. Millennium Management LLC raised its stake in American Financial Group by 166.7% during the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 280,012 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $36,777,000 after buying an additional 175,015 shares during the period. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its stake in American Financial Group by 112.5% during the 1st quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 327,621 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $43,030,000 after buying an additional 173,452 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.37% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AFG has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen raised American Financial Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, September 13th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective 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. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped 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. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of American Financial Group in a research note on Wednesday. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $136.75.

American Financial Group Price Performance

AFG stock opened at $137.26 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $137.76 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $129.71. The stock has a market cap of $11.45 billion, a PE ratio of 15.08 and a beta of 0.74. 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 1 year low of $114.73 and a 1 year high of $150.19.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The insurance provider reported $2.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 company's revenue was up 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.56 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 10.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Financial Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 24th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 15th will be issued a $0.88 dividend. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 15th. This is a positive change from American Financial Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.80. American Financial Group's dividend payout ratio is 35.16%.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Financial Group

In other news, Director Stephen Craig Lindner, Jr. sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 $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 is available at the SEC website. 17.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

American Financial Group 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.

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