D.A. Davidson & CO. Takes Position in American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG)

D.A. Davidson & CO. acquired a new position in shares of American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 3,354 shares of the insurance provider's stock, valued at approximately $441,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 8,287,861 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $1,134,857,000 after purchasing an additional 99,560 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in American Financial Group by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,595,346 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $218,146,000 after buying an additional 42,139 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in American Financial Group by 6.8% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 996,724 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $136,481,000 after buying an additional 63,193 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in American Financial Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $122,419,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 35.8% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 802,069 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $109,827,000 after buying an additional 211,630 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.37% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AFG has been the topic of several research reports. Wall Street Zen cut shares of American Financial Group from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, June 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on American Financial Group from $125.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th.

American Financial Group Stock Up 1.6%

Shares of NYSE AFG traded up $2.02 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $128.34. The company's stock had a trading volume of 411,313 shares, compared to its average volume of 419,217. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $124.51 and a 200-day simple moving average of $127.25. The company has a current ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.48 and a beta of 0.71. American Financial Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $114.73 and a fifty-two week high of $150.19.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The insurance provider reported $1.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.17 by ($0.36). American Financial Group had a net margin of 9.66% and a return on equity of 18.34%. The business had revenue of $1.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.74 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.76 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 10.5 earnings per share for the current year.

American Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 25th. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 15th will be given a dividend of $0.80 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 15th. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.49%. American Financial Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.61%.

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.