American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) Shares Bought by California Public Employees Retirement System

California Public Employees Retirement System raised its position in American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) by 34.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 180,172 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 45,752 shares during the period. California Public Employees Retirement System’s holdings in American Financial Group were worth $21,421,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in AFG. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its stake in shares of American Financial Group by 242.3% in the 3rd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 3,053 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $341,000 after acquiring an additional 2,161 shares during the period. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC lifted its stake in shares of American Financial Group by 16.4% in the 3rd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 5,374 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $600,000 after acquiring an additional 759 shares during the period. Ballentine Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Financial Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $280,000. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 7.3% in the 3rd quarter. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC now owns 4,449 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $497,000 after purchasing an additional 304 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Commonwealth Equity Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 11.9% in the 3rd quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 11,800 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,318,000 after purchasing an additional 1,251 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.37% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on AFG shares. Piper Sandler reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $129.00 price target on shares of American Financial Group in a report on Monday, April 1st. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of American Financial Group from $139.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 25th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $133.50.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Financial Group

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

American Financial Group Stock Performance

NYSE:AFG opened at $127.34 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $129.68 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $120.61. American Financial Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $105.22 and a twelve month high of $137.71. The company has a market capitalization of $10.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.67 and a beta of 0.79.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 7th. The insurance provider reported $2.84 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.81 by $0.03. American Financial Group had a net margin of 10.89% and a return on equity of 22.14%. The firm had revenue of $1.73 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.67 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.99 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 10.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Financial Group Dividend Announcement

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

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.