Wells Fargo & Company Issues Pessimistic Forecast for American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) Stock Price

Key Points

• Wells Fargo cut its price target for American Financial Group from $160 to $155 while keeping an "overweight" rating, a target that implies about a 17.16% upside from the current share price.
• Analyst consensus remains a "Hold" with a $144 average target; AFG shares traded at $132.30 and sit in a 52-week range of $120.52–$150.02.
• AFG beat last quarter's estimates (EPS $3.65 vs. $3.18 and revenue $2.06B vs. $1.79B) despite a 4% YoY revenue decline, and the CFO sold 1,663 shares while insiders still own about 17.4% of the stock.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG - Get Free Report) had its price target lowered by Wells Fargo & Company from $160.00 to $155.00 in a research note issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an "overweight" rating on the insurance provider's stock. Wells Fargo & Company's target price suggests a potential upside of 17.16% from the company's current price.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently commented on AFG. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on American Financial Group from $134.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 25th. Weiss Ratings raised American Financial Group from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Monday, March 16th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $144.00.

American Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AFG traded up $0.42 during trading on Thursday, hitting $132.30. The company had a trading volume of 21,272 shares, compared to its average volume of 639,792. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.10 and a beta of 0.69. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $129.34 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $133.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. American Financial Group has a fifty-two week low of $120.52 and a fifty-two week high of $150.02.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The insurance provider reported $3.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.18 by $0.47. The firm had revenue of $2.06 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.79 billion. American Financial Group had a net margin of 10.30% and a return on equity of 18.64%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.12 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that American Financial Group will post 10.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Brian S. Hertzman sold 1,663 shares of American Financial Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.70, for a total transaction of $222,343.10. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 12,073 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,614,160.10. The trade was a 12.11% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 17.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On American Financial Group

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its position in shares of American Financial Group by 904.8% during the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 211 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 190 shares during the last quarter. Alpine Bank Wealth Management acquired a new position in American Financial Group in the third quarter valued at about $30,000. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in American Financial Group during the third quarter worth about $34,000. Clearstead Advisors LLC boosted its stake in American Financial Group by 87.7% during the fourth quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 259 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 121 shares during the period. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of American Financial Group by 165.0% during the third quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 273 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 170 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.37% of the company's stock.

About American Financial Group

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.

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