National Bank of Canada FI Reduces Stock Position in American Financial Group, Inc. $AFG

Key Points

• National Bank of Canada FI reduced its stake in American Financial Group, Inc. by 97.0% in the first quarter, dropping its holdings to just 1,043 shares worth $137,000.
• Despite the stake reduction by National Bank, other institutional investors such as Charles Schwab Investment Management and Voya Investment Management significantly increased their holdings in American Financial Group during the same quarter.
• American Financial Group reported a quarterly earnings beat with $2.14 EPS, exceeding estimates, but its revenue came in lower than expected at $1.65 billion.

National Bank of Canada FI cut its stake in American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG - Free Report) by 97.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,043 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 34,061 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI's holdings in American Financial Group were worth $137,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 2,012,027 shares in the last quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of American Financial Group by 89.5% during the 4th quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 672,851 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $92,134,000 after purchasing an additional 317,859 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in shares of American Financial Group by 35.8% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 802,069 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $109,827,000 after purchasing an additional 211,630 shares in the last quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH purchased a new position in shares of American Financial Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $20,675,000. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of American Financial Group by 27.7% during the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 684,178 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $93,684,000 after purchasing an additional 148,259 shares in the last quarter. 64.37% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Financial Group Stock Down 1.3%

Shares of AFG opened at $131.57 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $10.97 billion, a PE ratio of 14.46 and a beta of 0.74. The company's fifty day moving average is $126.15 and its two-hundred day moving average is $125.89. American Financial Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $114.73 and a fifty-two week 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.

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 for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.08 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $1.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.77 billion. American Financial Group had a net margin of 9.21% and a return on equity of 17.41%. American Financial Group's revenue for the quarter was up 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.56 EPS. Analysts forecast that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 10.5 earnings per share for the current year.

American Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 25th. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 15th were issued 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 payout ratio is presently 35.16%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on AFG. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of 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 lowered their target price on shares of American Financial Group from $127.00 to $124.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, August 12th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of American Financial Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus 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.

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