Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Reduces Position in American Financial Group, Inc. $AFG

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio lessened its stake in shares of American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) by 7.0% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 22,078 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 1,672 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio’s holdings in American Financial Group were worth $2,786,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of AFG. Private Trust Co. NA grew its position in American Financial Group by 144.3% during the 1st quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 215 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 127 shares during the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of American Financial Group in the 1st quarter valued at $34,000. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Financial Group in the 1st quarter valued at $55,000. Costello Asset Management INC purchased a new stake in shares of American Financial Group in the 1st quarter valued at $68,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. boosted its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 97.4% in the 1st quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 671 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $88,000 after acquiring an additional 331 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.37% of the company’s stock.

American Financial Group Stock Performance

AFG opened at $146.70 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.47 and a quick ratio of 0.47. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $134.87 and a 200 day moving average price of $128.78. The stock has a market cap of $12.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.12 and a beta of 0.74. American Financial Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $114.73 and a 1 year high of $150.19.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The insurance provider reported $2.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.08 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $1.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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 revenue for the quarter was up 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.56 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 10.5 earnings per share for the current year.

American Financial Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 24th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 15th will be given a dividend of $0.88 per share. This is a boost from American Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.80. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. American Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 35.16%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently commented on AFG shares. Wall Street Zen raised shares of American Financial Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, September 13th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on shares of American Financial Group from $127.00 to $124.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 12th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of American Financial Group from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, August 11th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, American Financial Group has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $136.75.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other American Financial Group news, Director Stephen Craig Lindner, Jr. sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $134.31, for a total transaction of $1,343,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 326,730 shares in the company, valued at approximately $43,883,106.30. This 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.

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.