American Financial Group, Inc. $AFG Position Increased by Russell Investments Group Ltd.

Key Points

• Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its stake in American Financial Group by 5.8% in the first quarter, acquiring an additional 3,444 shares, bringing their total ownership to 62,473 shares valued at approximately $8.2 million.
• American Financial Group has recently received varied assessments from analysts, with Wall Street Zen upgrading the stock from "sell" to "hold," while Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered its price target from $127.00 to $124.00.
• The company reported a quarterly earnings per share of $2.14, surpassing analyst expectations, and it has declared a quarterly dividend of $0.80 per share, representing a yield of 2.4% on an annualized basis.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its stake in shares of American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG - Free Report) by 5.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 62,473 shares of the insurance provider's stock after buying an additional 3,444 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned about 0.07% of American Financial Group worth $8,195,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Xponance Inc. lifted its holdings in American Financial Group by 0.7% in the first quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 11,882 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $1,561,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the period. Astoria Portfolio Advisors LLC. raised its position in shares of American Financial Group by 4.9% during the 1st quarter. Astoria Portfolio Advisors LLC. now owns 1,727 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $222,000 after buying an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Utah Retirement Systems lifted its stake in shares of American Financial Group by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Utah Retirement Systems now owns 11,917 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $1,632,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Private Trust Co. NA boosted its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 144.3% in the first quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 215 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 127 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Johnson Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of American Financial Group by 4.9% during the fourth quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. now owns 3,101 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $423,000 after acquiring an additional 144 shares during the period. 64.37% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at American Financial Group

In other 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 completion of the sale, the director owned 326,730 shares in the company, valued at $43,883,106.30. This represents a 2.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 17.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on American Financial Group from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, August 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on American Financial Group from $127.00 to $124.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 12th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised American Financial Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $136.75.

American Financial Group Trading Up 1.2%

NYSE AFG traded up $1.5720 on Friday, hitting $134.6320. 249,671 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 471,970. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.47 and a quick ratio of 0.47. American Financial Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $114.73 and a twelve month high of $150.19. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.79 and a beta of 0.74. The company's 50 day moving average price is $127.04 and its 200-day moving average price is $125.92.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The insurance provider reported $2.14 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.06. American Financial Group had a net margin of 9.21% and a return on equity of 17.41%. The company had revenue of $1.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.77 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.56 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. 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 company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 15th were given a dividend of $0.80 per share. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, July 15th. American Financial Group's payout ratio is presently 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.