Squarepoint Ops LLC Lowers Position in American Financial Group, Inc. $AFG

Squarepoint Ops LLC lowered its stake in American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG - Free Report) by 23.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 144,330 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 44,006 shares during the quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC owned about 0.17% of American Financial Group worth $20,198,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AFG. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System purchased a new stake in shares of American Financial Group in the first quarter worth $2,567,000. First Trust Advisors LP raised its position in shares of American Financial Group by 433.2% during the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 316,974 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $40,481,000 after purchasing an additional 257,522 shares during the period. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd lifted its stake in shares of American Financial Group by 281.1% during the 1st quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd now owns 28,243 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $3,607,000 after buying an additional 20,832 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia purchased a new position in shares of American Financial Group during the 2nd quarter valued at $6,760,000. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its holdings in American Financial Group by 377.6% in the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 49,681 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $6,790,000 after buying an additional 39,279 shares during the period. 64.37% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Financial Group Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of AFG opened at $140.49 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 0.49 and a quick ratio of 0.49. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.28 and a beta of 0.60. American Financial Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $123.09 and a 1 year high of $150.02. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $143.02 and its 200-day simple moving average is $135.68.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The insurance provider reported $2.82 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.32 by $0.50. The firm had revenue of $2.03 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.85 billion. American Financial Group had a net margin of 11.51% and a return on equity of 20.35%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.14 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 12.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 24th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 15th were issued a dividend of $0.88 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 15th. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. American Financial Group's payout ratio is presently 30.77%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on American Financial Group from $158.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of American Financial Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, August 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of American Financial Group from $148.00 to $153.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of American Financial Group from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of American Financial Group from $140.00 to $156.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $156.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Michelle Gillis sold 2,247 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $139.00, for a total transaction of $312,333.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 13,135 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,825,765. The trade was a 14.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider David Thompson, Jr. sold 11,370 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.05, for a total transaction of $1,535,518.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 584,098 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $78,882,434.90. This trade represents a 1.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 17,380 shares of company stock worth $2,390,788 in the last 90 days. 16.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

American Financial Group Company Profile

American Financial Group, Inc NYSE: AFG is a diversified holding company primarily engaged in property and casualty insurance and reinsurance. Through its flagship subsidiary, Great American Insurance Company, the firm underwrites a broad range of specialty insurance products for commercial and industrial clients, including inland marine, excess and surplus lines, executive liability, and environmental liability coverage. In addition, American Financial Group offers supplemental accident and health insurance and assumes reinsurance risks from other insurers, helping to diversify its underwriting portfolio.

The company traces its roots to 1946, when it was founded by Carl Lindner, Sr.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.