American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) Shares Sold by New York State Common Retirement Fund

New York State Common Retirement Fund cut its holdings in shares of American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) by 11.1% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 55,730 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 6,969 shares during the quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund’s holdings in American Financial Group were worth $6,626,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC grew its position in American Financial Group by 132.5% during 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 last quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC acquired a new position in American Financial Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $42,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new stake in American Financial Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $52,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its stake 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 valued at $110,000 after purchasing an additional 914 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. acquired a new position in shares of American Financial Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $201,000. 64.37% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Financial Group Stock Down 0.2 %

AFG opened at $127.43 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 0.47 and a quick ratio of 0.47. American Financial Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $105.22 and a 12 month high of $137.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.19 and a beta of 0.79. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $129.98 and a 200-day simple moving average of $121.09.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 2nd. The insurance provider reported $2.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.70 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $1.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.89 billion. American Financial Group had a return on equity of 21.56% and a net margin of 11.03%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.89 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 10.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Financial Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 25th. Investors of record on Monday, April 15th were issued 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 dividend payout ratio is currently 27.18%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Michelle A. Gillis sold 5,176 shares of American Financial Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.00, for a total transaction of $626,296.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 45,372 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,490,012. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other American Financial Group news, SVP Michelle A. Gillis sold 5,176 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.00, for a total value of $626,296.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 45,372 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,490,012. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Brian S. Hertzman sold 1,067 shares of American Financial Group stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $126.95, for a total value of $135,455.65. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 10,583 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,343,511.85. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 14,843 shares of company stock worth $1,854,746. 14.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently weighed in on AFG. Piper Sandler reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $129.00 price target on shares of American Financial Group in a report on Monday, April 1st. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of American Financial Group from $139.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 25th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $133.50.

American Financial Group 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.