American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) Reaches New 52-Week Low – Should You Sell?

American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG)’s share price hit a new 52-week low on Monday . The stock traded as low as $114.90 and last traded at $115.49, with a volume of 32419 shares. The stock had previously closed at $121.81.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods downgraded American Financial Group from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $164.00 to $144.00 in a report on Friday, February 7th.

American Financial Group Stock Performance

The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $127.54 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $133.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.07 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 0.53.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The insurance provider reported $3.12 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.15 by ($0.03). American Financial Group had a net margin of 10.66% and a return on equity of 20.30%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 10.5 EPS for the current year.

American Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be paid a $0.80 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 15th. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.74%. American Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is 30.27%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other American Financial Group news, Director Gregory G. Joseph bought 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were bought at an average price of $121.00 per share, for a total transaction of $363,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 57,477 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,954,717. This trade represents a 5.51 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 14.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Financial Group

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. UMB Bank n.a. grew its position in American Financial Group by 86.8% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 340 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 158 shares during the period. Natixis bought a new stake in shares of American Financial Group during the 4th quarter worth $47,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of American Financial Group during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $53,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its stake in shares of American Financial Group by 91.2% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 520 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $71,000 after acquiring an additional 248 shares during the period. Finally, Measured Risk Portfolios Inc. purchased a new position in shares of American Financial Group in the fourth quarter worth about $73,000. 64.37% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.