American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) Given New $140.00 Price Target at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) had its price target hoisted by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $134.00 to $140.00 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods currently has a market perform rating on the insurance provider’s stock.

AFG has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of American Financial Group from $165.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of American Financial Group from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Monday, March 16th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, American Financial Group currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $145.25.

American Financial Group Stock Performance

AFG stock opened at $126.72 on Wednesday. American Financial Group has a 1-year low of $114.73 and a 1-year high of $150.02. The company has a current ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The firm has a market cap of $10.56 billion, a PE ratio of 12.58 and a beta of 0.69. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $129.51 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $134.72.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The insurance provider reported $3.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.18 by $0.47. The company had revenue of $2.06 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.79 billion. American Financial Group had a return on equity of 18.64% and a net margin of 10.30%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.12 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that American Financial Group will post 10.5 earnings per share for the current year.

American Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a special dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 25th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 16th were given a dividend of $1.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 13th. American Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is 34.96%.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Financial Group

In other news, CFO Brian S. Hertzman sold 1,663 shares of American Financial Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.70, for a total value of $222,343.10. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 12,073 shares in the company, valued at $1,614,160.10. This trade represents a 12.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 17.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of American Financial Group by 12.9% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,963,942 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $431,906,000 after acquiring an additional 337,573 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in American Financial Group by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,567,721 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $350,956,000 after purchasing an additional 57,246 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in American Financial Group by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,732,557 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $236,645,000 after purchasing an additional 29,731 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in American Financial Group by 12.3% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,266,001 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $173,045,000 after purchasing an additional 138,483 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in American Financial Group by 33.2% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,026,783 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $149,623,000 after purchasing an additional 255,693 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 64.37% of the company’s stock.

About American Financial Group

American Financial Group, Inc (NYSE: AFG) is a diversified holding company primarily engaged in property and casualty insurance and reinsurance. Through its flagship subsidiary, Great American Insurance Company, the firm underwrites a broad range of specialty insurance products for commercial and industrial clients, including inland marine, excess and surplus lines, executive liability, and environmental liability coverage. In addition, American Financial Group offers supplemental accident and health insurance and assumes reinsurance risks from other insurers, helping to diversify its underwriting portfolio.

The company traces its roots to 1946, when it was founded by Carl Lindner, Sr.