American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) Short Interest Down 8.5% in April

American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant drop in short interest in April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 702,600 shares, a drop of 8.5% from the March 31st total of 767,900 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 343,300 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.0 days. Approximately 0.9% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Insider Transactions at American Financial Group

In related news, Director James E. Evans sold 2,274 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $128.64, for a total transaction of $292,527.36. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 105,302 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,546,049.28. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other American Financial Group news, CFO Brian S. Hertzman sold 1,067 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $126.95, for a total value of $135,455.65. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 10,583 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,343,511.85. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director James E. Evans sold 2,274 shares of American Financial Group stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $128.64, for a total value of $292,527.36. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 105,302 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $13,546,049.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 14,843 shares of company stock worth $1,854,746 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 14.50% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Financial Group

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of AFG. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC lifted its position in shares of American Financial Group by 132.5% in the 3rd quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 272 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 155 shares during the period. Arlington Trust Co LLC purchased a new stake in American Financial Group in the fourth quarter worth about $42,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new stake in American Financial Group during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $52,000. GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Financial Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $53,000. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its position in shares of American Financial Group by 7,616.7% in the 4th quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 926 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $110,000 after acquiring an additional 914 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.37% of the company's stock.

American Financial Group Trading Up 0.2 %

AFG stock traded up $0.30 during trading on Monday, hitting $127.64. 354,952 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 335,191. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a current ratio of 0.47. The company has a 50-day moving average of $129.76 and a 200-day moving average of $120.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.70 billion, a PE ratio of 12.70 and a beta of 0.79. American Financial Group has a 1 year low of $105.22 and a 1 year high of $137.71.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 7th. The insurance provider reported $2.84 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.81 by $0.03. American Financial Group had a return on equity of 22.14% and a net margin of 10.89%. The firm had revenue of $1.73 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.67 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.99 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 6.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that American Financial Group will post 10.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 25th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 15th were given a dividend of $0.71 per share. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.23%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 12th. American Financial Group's payout ratio is 28.26%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AFG has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Piper Sandler reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $129.00 price objective on shares of American Financial Group in a research report on Monday, April 1st. Citigroup raised their price target on American Financial Group from $139.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, March 25th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $133.50.

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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