American International Group (NYSE:AIG) Reaches New 52-Week High on Strong Earnings

Shares of American International Group, Inc. (NYSE:AIG) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The company traded as high as $79.70 and last traded at $77.88, with a volume of 1109757 shares. The stock had previously closed at $75.81.

The insurance provider reported $1.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.66 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $12.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.04 billion. American International Group had a return on equity of 10.68% and a net margin of 7.78%. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.63 earnings per share.

American International Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 14th were issued a dividend of $0.36 per share. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.86%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 13th. American International Group’s payout ratio is currently 28.86%.

American International Group declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Wednesday, May 1st that permits the company to buyback $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the insurance provider to repurchase up to 19.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently issued reports on AIG. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on American International Group from $83.00 to $81.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on American International Group from $73.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on American International Group from $72.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. Bank of America downgraded American International Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $75.00 to $77.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on American International Group from $74.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $80.38.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director John C. Inglis acquired 659 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 14th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $75.39 per share, for a total transaction of $49,682.01. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 659 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $49,682.01. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Peter Zaffino sold 333,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.87, for a total value of $25,264,710.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 505,420 shares in the company, valued at $38,346,215.40. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director John C. Inglis acquired 659 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 14th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $75.39 per share, for a total transaction of $49,682.01. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 659 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $49,682.01. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.61% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American International Group

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new stake in American International Group during the third quarter worth approximately $26,000. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new stake in American International Group during the first quarter worth approximately $29,000. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in American International Group by 303.3% during the first quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 367 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 276 shares during the period. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in American International Group during the third quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, CENTRAL TRUST Co boosted its position in American International Group by 123.8% during the first quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 452 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 90.60% of the company’s stock.

American International Group Stock Up 2.3 %

The stock has a market cap of $52.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.63, a PEG ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a quick ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $75.10 and a 200-day simple moving average of $69.30.

American International Group Company Profile

American International Group, Inc offers insurance products for commercial, institutional, and individual customers in North America and internationally. It operates through three segments: General Insurance, Life and Retirement, and Other Operations. The General Insurance segment provides commercial and industrial property insurance, including business interruption and package insurance that cover exposure to made and natural disasters; general liability, environmental, commercial automobile liability, workers' compensation, excess casualty, and crisis management insurance products; and professional liability insurance.