Raymond James Financial Inc. Buys 28,068 Shares of American Financial Group, Inc. $AFG

Key Points

• Raymond James Financial Inc. increased its stake in American Financial Group by 133.7%, acquiring an additional 28,068 shares, bringing its total ownership to about 49,064 shares valued at $6.44 million.
• American Financial Group reported $2.14 EPS for the last quarter, exceeding analyst expectations, while generating a revenue of $1.65 billion, slightly below the forecast.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.80 per share, representing an annualized dividend yield of 2.3% with a payout ratio of 35.16%.

Raymond James Financial Inc. grew its stake in shares of American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG - Free Report) by 133.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 49,064 shares of the insurance provider's stock after buying an additional 28,068 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned approximately 0.06% of American Financial Group worth $6,444,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in American Financial Group by 10.8% in the 1st quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 59,633 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $7,832,000 after purchasing an additional 5,799 shares in the last quarter. Sowell Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in American Financial Group during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $282,000. Teacher Retirement System of Texas bought a new position in shares of American Financial Group during the 1st quarter valued at $1,370,000. Private Trust Co. NA boosted its stake in American Financial Group by 144.3% during the first quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 215 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 127 shares during the last quarter. Finally, QRG Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 10.5% in the 1st quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 5,427 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $713,000 after purchasing an additional 514 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.37% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Stephen Craig Lindner, Jr. sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $134.31, for a total transaction of $1,343,100.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 326,730 shares in the company, valued at approximately $43,883,106.30. This represents a 2.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 17.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AFG has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on American Financial Group from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, August 11th. Wall Street Zen cut American Financial Group from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 30th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target 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. Four 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 an average price target of $136.75.

American Financial Group Trading Down 1.2%

Shares of American Financial Group stock traded down $1.67 on Monday, reaching $136.99. The company had a trading volume of 175,516 shares, compared to its average volume of 496,473. American Financial Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $114.73 and a 52-week high of $150.19. The firm has a market cap of $11.42 billion, a PE ratio of 15.05 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a current ratio of 0.47. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $129.52 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $126.75.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The insurance provider reported $2.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $1.65 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.77 billion. American Financial Group had a net margin of 9.21% and a return on equity of 17.41%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.56 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 10.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Financial Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 15th were issued a $0.80 dividend. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, July 15th. American Financial Group's payout ratio is 35.16%.

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.