Lazard Asset Management LLC Purchases New Shares in American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG)

Lazard Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 391 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $53,000.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AFG. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. increased its stake in shares of American Financial Group by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 5,798 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $794,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Horan Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in American Financial Group by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Horan Securities Inc. now owns 2,595 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $355,000 after buying an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Shoker Investment Counsel Inc. increased its stake in American Financial Group by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Shoker Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 2,648 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $363,000 after buying an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 4.6% during the fourth quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 2,226 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $305,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 4,127 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $565,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. 64.37% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on American Financial Group from $126.00 to $125.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 9th.

American Financial Group Stock Performance

AFG opened at $121.57 on Monday. American Financial Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $114.73 and a twelve month high of $150.19. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.17 billion, a PE ratio of 11.50 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a current ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $125.98 and its 200 day moving average price is $131.38.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The insurance provider reported $1.81 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.17 by ($0.36). The business had revenue of $1.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.74 billion. American Financial Group had a return on equity of 20.30% and a net margin of 10.66%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.76 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 10.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th were paid a dividend of $0.80 per share. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.63%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 15th. American Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 33.61%.

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.