LPL Financial LLC Purchases 7,975 Shares of American Financial Group, Inc. $AFG

Key Points

• LPL Financial LLC increased its stake in American Financial Group by 116.5%, acquiring an additional 7,975 shares during the first quarter, bringing its total holdings to 14,821 shares valued at approximately $1.95 million.
• Various institutional investors have recently engaged with American Financial Group, with TD Asset Management growing its stake by 8.5% and Cetera Investment Advisers increasing theirs by 153.1% during the same period.
• American Financial Group reported earnings of $2.14 per share for the latest quarter, exceeding estimates, but the company’s revenue was 1.3% higher year-over-year, totaling $1.65 billion.

LPL Financial LLC lifted its stake in American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG - Free Report) by 116.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 14,821 shares of the insurance provider's stock after acquiring an additional 7,975 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC's holdings in American Financial Group were worth $1,947,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. TD Asset Management Inc boosted its stake in American Financial Group by 8.5% during the first quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 33,680 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $4,424,000 after buying an additional 2,650 shares in the last quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in American Financial Group during the 1st quarter worth about $226,000. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ grew its position in shares of American Financial Group by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ now owns 28,302 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $3,717,000 after buying an additional 473 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers grew its position in shares of American Financial Group by 153.1% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 11,925 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $1,566,000 after buying an additional 7,214 shares during the period. Finally, Burney Co. grew its position in shares of American Financial Group by 1.3% in the 1st quarter. Burney Co. now owns 30,475 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $4,003,000 after purchasing an additional 385 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.37% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on AFG. 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. Wall Street Zen raised American Financial Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price 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 research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $136.75.

American Financial Group Trading Up 1.0%

NYSE AFG opened at $134.1060 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $11.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.74 and a beta of 0.74. American Financial Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $114.73 and a 52 week high of $150.19. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $126.67 and a 200-day moving average price of $125.96. 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 (NYSE:AFG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The insurance provider reported $2.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 business had revenue of $1.65 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.77 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.56 earnings per share. American Financial Group's revenue was up 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 10.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Financial Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 25th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 15th were paid a dividend of $0.80 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, July 15th. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. American Financial Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 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.

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.