American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) Hits New 12-Month High – Here’s What Happened

American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) shares hit a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday. The stock traded as high as $151.00 and last traded at $150.9750, with a volume of 32,921 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $149.68.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Weiss Ratings upgraded American Financial Group from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on American Financial Group from $140.00 to $156.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on American Financial Group from $153.00 to $147.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 12th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of American Financial Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, October 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of American Financial Group from $175.00 to $166.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 12th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $152.75.

American Financial Group Trading Up 1.5%

The firm has a market cap of $12.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.28 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 0.49 and a quick ratio of 0.49. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $142.80 and its 200-day moving average is $138.45.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The insurance provider reported $2.82 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.32 by $0.50. American Financial Group had a net margin of 11.51% and a return on equity of 20.35%. The business had revenue of $2.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.85 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.14 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 12.29 earnings per share for the current year.

American Financial Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 15th will be paid a $0.97 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 15th. This represents a $3.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. This is a positive change from American Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.88. American Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.92%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Brian Hertzman sold 950 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $142.87, for a total transaction of $135,726.50. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 11,123 shares in the company, valued at $1,589,143.01. This represents a 7.87% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Mark Weiss sold 2,813 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.76, for a total value of $407,209.88. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 6,648 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $962,364.48. This represents a 29.73% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 16.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On American Financial Group

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of AFG. Root Financial Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Financial Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $135,000. Vest Financial LLC lifted its position in shares of American Financial Group by 99.2% during the 3rd quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 28,837 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $3,944,000 after acquiring an additional 14,364 shares during the period. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. boosted its stake in American Financial Group by 1.5% during the third quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 4,759 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $651,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Sowell Financial Services LLC boosted its stake in American Financial Group by 6.6% during the third quarter. Sowell Financial Services LLC now owns 1,820 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $249,000 after acquiring an additional 112 shares in the last quarter. Finally, IFP Advisors Inc grew its holdings in American Financial Group by 41.3% in the third quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,246 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $170,000 after purchasing an additional 364 shares during the period. 64.37% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About American Financial Group

American Financial Group, Inc (NYSE:AFG) is an insurance holding company headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio. Through its Great American Insurance Group operations, the company primarily provides property and casualty insurance, with an emphasis on specialty commercial products and markets.

Its insurance offerings serve businesses, organizations and individuals across a range of industries. Product lines have included commercial property and liability coverage, workers’ compensation, transportation, agriculture and crop insurance, marine and other specialty risks.