A&I Financial Services LLC Invests $576,000 in American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG)

A&I Financial Services LLC bought a new position in shares of American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 4,208 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $576,000. American Financial Group comprises 0.6% of A&I Financial Services LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest position.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. UMB Bank n.a. increased its stake 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 worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 158 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP grew its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 301.1% in the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 702 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $94,000 after purchasing an additional 527 shares in the last quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in American Financial Group in the third quarter worth $125,000. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in American Financial Group during the third quarter valued at $130,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in American Financial Group by 31.6% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,059 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $145,000 after purchasing an additional 254 shares in the last quarter. 64.37% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Financial Group Stock Performance

AFG stock opened at $125.18 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $10.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.84 and a beta of 0.83. American Financial Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $118.97 and a 1-year high of $150.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.53 and a quick ratio of 0.53. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $131.89 and a 200 day moving average price of $134.50.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The insurance provider reported $3.12 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 research analysts forecast that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 10.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Financial Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 24th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 14th were given a $0.80 dividend. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, January 14th. American Financial Group’s payout ratio is currently 30.27%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on AFG shares. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of American Financial Group from $135.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on American Financial Group from $135.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered American Financial Group from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $164.00 to $144.00 in a research note on Friday, February 7th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Gregory G. Joseph purchased 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $121.00 per share, with a total value of $363,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 57,477 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,954,717. This trade represents a 5.51 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 14.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

American Financial Group 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.