Baird Financial Group Inc. Has $283,000 Stock Holdings in American Financial Group, Inc. $AFG

Baird Financial Group Inc. trimmed its holdings in American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) by 9.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,154 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 225 shares during the period. Baird Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in American Financial Group were worth $283,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in AFG. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 395.5% in the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,520,714 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $331,071,000 after purchasing an additional 2,012,027 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new position in shares of American Financial Group in the 1st quarter worth about $30,442,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its position in shares of American Financial Group by 112.5% in the 1st quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 327,621 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $43,030,000 after acquiring an additional 173,452 shares in the last quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new position in shares of American Financial Group in the 4th quarter worth about $20,675,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC increased its position in American Financial Group by 6,414.6% in the 1st quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 129,967 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $17,070,000 after buying an additional 127,972 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 64.37% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on AFG shares. Wall Street Zen lowered American Financial Group from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, August 30th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on American Financial Group from $127.00 to $124.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of American Financial Group from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, August 11th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $136.75.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Stephen Craig Lindner, Jr. sold 10,000 shares of American Financial Group stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $134.31, for a total value of $1,343,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 326,730 shares in the company, valued at approximately $43,883,106.30. This trade represents a 2.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 17.40% of the company’s stock.

American Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AFG opened at $140.24 on Friday. American Financial Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $114.73 and a fifty-two week high of $150.19. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $130.50 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $127.16. The company has a market capitalization of $11.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.41 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a current ratio of 0.47.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The insurance provider reported $2.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $1.65 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.77 billion. American Financial Group had a net margin of 9.21% and a return on equity of 17.41%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.56 earnings per share. 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 declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 15th were issued a $0.80 dividend. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, July 15th. American Financial Group’s payout ratio is currently 35.16%.

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.