American Financial Group, Inc. $AFG Shares Sold by Bahl & Gaynor Inc.

Bahl & Gaynor Inc. cut its holdings in shares of American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) by 7.7% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 479,226 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 40,122 shares during the quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc.’s holdings in American Financial Group were worth $69,833,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Advisors Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 3.2% during the second quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,640 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $333,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in American Financial Group by 11.5% in the third quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 884 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $129,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its position in American Financial Group by 12.1% during the 3rd quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 863 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $125,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares during the period. Intrust Bank NA raised its stake in shares of American Financial Group by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. Intrust Bank NA now owns 2,935 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $428,000 after buying an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 7,405 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,087,000 after buying an additional 115 shares during the period. 64.37% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently commented on AFG. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on American Financial Group from $165.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of American Financial Group from $130.00 to $139.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 6th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating and set a $142.00 price target on shares of American Financial Group in a report on Tuesday, November 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut shares of American Financial Group from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Monday, January 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $141.25.

American Financial Group Price Performance

American Financial Group stock opened at $133.04 on Monday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $131.86 and its 200 day moving average price is $135.51. American Financial Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $114.73 and a 1 year high of $150.02. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.21 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.23.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The insurance provider reported $3.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.18 by $0.47. The company had revenue of $2.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.79 billion. American Financial Group had a net margin of 10.30% and a return on equity of 18.64%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.12 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 10.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a special dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 25th. Investors of record on Monday, February 16th were paid a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 13th. American Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 34.96%.

American Financial Group Profile

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.