Headlands Technologies LLC Makes New Investment in American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG)

Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new position in American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 415 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $55,000.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of AFG. LPL Financial LLC raised its holdings in American Financial Group by 8.4% in the fourth quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 6,846 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $937,000 after buying an additional 533 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,052 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $692,000 after purchasing an additional 164 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 4.8% during the fourth quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 53,834 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $7,372,000 after purchasing an additional 2,474 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Financial Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $5,025,000. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of American Financial Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,875,000. 64.37% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE AFG opened at $130.97 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $125.62 and a 200 day moving average of $126.08. The company has a current ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.39 and a beta of 0.74. American Financial Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $114.73 and a 12-month high of $150.19.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The insurance provider reported $2.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $1.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.77 billion. American Financial Group had a net margin of 9.21% and a return on equity of 17.41%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.56 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 10.5 earnings per share for the current year.

American Financial Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 25th. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 15th were given a dividend of $0.80 per share. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, July 15th. American Financial Group’s payout ratio is 35.16%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of American Financial Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of American Financial Group from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on shares of American Financial Group from $127.00 to $124.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $136.75.

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.