American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) Shares Sold by Maryland State Retirement & Pension System

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System reduced its stake in American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) by 18.2% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,354 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 746 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in American Financial Group were worth $441,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of AFG. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of American Financial Group by 395.5% in the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,520,714 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $331,071,000 after acquiring an additional 2,012,027 shares in the last quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of American Financial Group by 89.5% in the fourth quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 672,851 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $92,134,000 after acquiring an additional 317,859 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in shares of American Financial Group by 35.8% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 802,069 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $109,827,000 after acquiring an additional 211,630 shares in the last quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new stake in shares of American Financial Group in the fourth quarter valued at $20,675,000. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of American Financial Group by 27.7% in the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 684,178 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $93,684,000 after acquiring an additional 148,259 shares in the last quarter. 64.37% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently issued reports on AFG shares. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on American Financial Group from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, August 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on American Financial Group from $127.00 to $124.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised American Financial Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $136.75.

American Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of AFG stock opened at $131.57 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $126.15 and its two-hundred day moving average is $126.06. The firm has a market cap of $10.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.46 and a beta of 0.74. American Financial Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $114.73 and a 1 year high of $150.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a current ratio of 0.47.

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

American Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 15th were issued a dividend of $0.80 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, July 15th. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. American Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.16%.

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.