Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC Grows Holdings in American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG)

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG - Free Report) by 31.4% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 8,389 shares of the insurance provider's stock after purchasing an additional 2,006 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC's holdings in American Financial Group were worth $1,102,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in American Financial Group by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 8,287,861 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $1,134,857,000 after purchasing an additional 99,560 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in American Financial Group by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,595,346 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $218,146,000 after purchasing an additional 42,139 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in American Financial Group by 6.8% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 996,724 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $136,481,000 after purchasing an additional 63,193 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in American Financial Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $122,419,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in shares of American Financial Group by 35.8% in the fourth 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 during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 64.37% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have commented on AFG shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on shares of American Financial Group from $126.00 to $125.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of American Financial Group from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, June 21st.

American Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE AFG traded down $1.39 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $125.24. The company had a trading volume of 546,278 shares, compared to its average volume of 511,266. The company has a current ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. American Financial Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $114.73 and a 1 year high of $150.19. The company has a market capitalization of $10.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.16 and a beta of 0.71. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $124.73 and its 200-day moving average price is $127.94.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The insurance provider reported $1.81 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.17 by ($0.36). American Financial Group had a return on equity of 18.34% and a net margin of 9.66%. The firm had revenue of $1.58 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.74 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.76 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 10.5 earnings per share for the current year.

American Financial Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.80 per share. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 15th. American Financial Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.61%.

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.