American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) Price Target Cut to $155.00 by Analysts at Wells Fargo & Company

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) had its target price decreased by analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $160.00 to $155.00 in a report released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “overweight” rating on the insurance provider’s stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s price target would suggest a potential upside of 17.16% from the stock’s previous close.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on American Financial Group from $134.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 25th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of American Financial Group from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Monday, March 16th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, American Financial Group currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $144.00.

American Financial Group Trading Up 0.3%

NYSE AFG traded up $0.42 on Thursday, reaching $132.30. The stock had a trading volume of 21,272 shares, compared to its average volume of 639,792. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $129.34 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $133.99. American Financial Group has a 12-month low of $120.52 and a 12-month high of $150.02. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.10 and a beta of 0.69.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other American Financial Group news, CFO Brian S. Hertzman sold 1,663 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 27th. The stock was 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 filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 17.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of American Financial Group by 12.9% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,963,942 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $431,906,000 after acquiring an additional 337,573 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in American Financial Group by 2.3% in 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 in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in American Financial Group by 1.7% in 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 increased 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 during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in American Financial Group by 33.2% during the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,026,783 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $149,623,000 after purchasing an additional 255,693 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other 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.