Farther Finance Advisors LLC Sells 3,477 Shares of American Financial Group, Inc. $AFG

Key Points

• Farther Finance Advisors LLC significantly reduced its stake in American Financial Group by 78.1%, trimming their holdings to 976 shares after selling 3,477 shares.
• American Financial Group recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.88, an increase from their previous dividend of $0.80, resulting in an annualized yield of 2.4%.
• Several institutional investors have increased their positions in American Financial Group, with 64.37% of the stock now owned by such investors, indicating strong institutional interest in the company.

Farther Finance Advisors LLC trimmed its stake in American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG - Free Report) by 78.1% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 976 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 3,477 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC's holdings in American Financial Group were worth $123,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. CX Institutional raised its position in American Financial Group by 4.5% during the 2nd quarter. CX Institutional now owns 2,839 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $358,000 after purchasing an additional 122 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. increased its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 15.6% in the 2nd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 776 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $98,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co increased its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 4.6% in the 2nd quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 2,356 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $297,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares during the period. IFM Investors Pty Ltd increased its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 11.7% in the 2nd quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd now owns 12,256 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $1,547,000 after acquiring an additional 1,281 shares during the period. Finally, Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. purchased a new position in shares of American Financial Group in the 2nd quarter valued at $3,155,000. 64.37% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on AFG. 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 report on Monday, August 11th. Wall Street Zen upgraded American Financial Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, September 13th. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of American Financial Group in a research note on Saturday, September 27th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price 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. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $136.75.

American Financial Group Trading Up 1.1%

AFG opened at $148.75 on Friday. American Financial Group, Inc. has a one year low of $114.73 and a one year high of $150.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.40 billion, a PE ratio of 16.35 and a beta of 0.74. The business's 50 day moving average price is $135.76 and its 200 day moving average price is $129.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a current ratio of 0.47.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The insurance provider reported $2.14 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 analysts' expectations of $1.77 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.56 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 10.5 EPS for the current year.

American Financial Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 24th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 15th will be issued a $0.88 dividend. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. This is a boost from American Financial Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.80. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 15th. American Financial Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 35.16%.

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.

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