17,388 Shares in American Financial Group, Inc. $AFG Bought by Ieq Capital LLC

Key Points

• Ieq Capital LLC has acquired 17,388 shares of American Financial Group, Inc., valued at approximately $2.28 million, marking a significant new investment in the insurance provider.
• American Financial Group recently reported $2.14 EPS for the last quarter, surpassing consensus estimates, with revenue slightly up by 1.3% year-over-year.
• A director of American Financial Group, Stephen Craig Lindner, Jr., sold 10,000 shares at an average price of $134.31, resulting in a 2.97% decrease in his ownership stake.

Ieq Capital LLC bought a new stake in American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 17,388 shares of the insurance provider's stock, valued at approximately $2,284,000.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in AFG. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 395.5% in the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,520,714 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $331,071,000 after purchasing an additional 2,012,027 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Financial Group in the 1st quarter valued at about $30,442,000. Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 35.8% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 802,069 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $109,827,000 after purchasing an additional 211,630 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 112.5% in the 1st quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 327,621 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $43,030,000 after purchasing an additional 173,452 shares during the period. Finally, Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new position in shares of American Financial Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $20,675,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.37% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Financial Group

In other news, Director Stephen Craig Lindner, Jr. sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the director directly owned 326,730 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $43,883,106.30. This represents a 2.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 17.40% of the company's stock.

American Financial Group Stock Performance

AFG stock traded down $1.10 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $138.58. 513,462 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 385,716. American Financial Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $114.73 and a twelve month high of $150.19. The company has a quick ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $129.52 and a 200-day simple moving average of $126.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.23 and a beta of 0.73.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly 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. 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 company posted $2.56 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, 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 was paid on Friday, July 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 15th were issued a dividend of $0.80 per share. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, July 15th. American Financial Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 35.16%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on AFG. 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 report on Tuesday, August 12th. Wall Street Zen downgraded American Financial Group from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, August 30th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on American Financial Group from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, August 11th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat, the stock presently 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.