Swiss National Bank Sells 36,500 Shares of American Financial Group, Inc. $AFG

Swiss National Bank trimmed its position in shares of American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) by 21.7% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 132,000 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 36,500 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank’s holdings in American Financial Group were worth $16,858,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in American Financial Group during the fourth quarter worth $114,661,000. M&T Bank Corp grew its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 20,131.5% during the fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 637,090 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $87,077,000 after buying an additional 633,941 shares during the last quarter. Vestor Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 100,006.8% during the fourth quarter. Vestor Capital LLC now owns 600,641 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $82,096,000 after buying an additional 600,041 shares during the last quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. acquired a new position in shares of American Financial Group during the fourth quarter valued at about $43,832,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 255,693 shares in the last quarter. 64.37% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on shares of American Financial Group from $140.00 to $148.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on American Financial Group from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of American Financial Group in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on American Financial Group from $158.00 to $173.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $150.75.

American Financial Group Stock Up 1.7%

AFG opened at $143.51 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The stock has a market cap of $11.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.64 and a beta of 0.62. American Financial Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $122.11 and a twelve month high of $150.02. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $136.83 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $132.54.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The insurance provider reported $2.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.54 by ($0.07). American Financial Group had a return on equity of 19.50% and a net margin of 10.76%.The firm had revenue of $1.85 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.70 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.81 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 11.37 earnings per share for the current year.

American Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 24th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 15th were issued a $0.88 dividend. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 15th. American Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 33.46%.

Insider Transactions at American Financial Group

In other American Financial Group news, insider David Lawrence Thompson, Jr. sold 11,370 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.05, for a total value of $1,535,518.50. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 584,098 shares in the company, valued at $78,882,434.90. This represents a 1.91% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Michelle A. Gillis sold 2,247 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $139.00, for a total transaction of $312,333.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 13,135 shares in the company, valued at $1,825,765. This represents a 14.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 16.90% 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.