American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) Shares Acquired by Handelsbanken Fonder AB

Handelsbanken Fonder AB increased its position in shares of American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) by 10.0% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 17,600 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,600 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in American Financial Group were worth $2,410,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. increased its position in shares of American Financial Group by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 151,771 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $20,782,000 after acquiring an additional 3,911 shares during the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd increased its holdings in American Financial Group by 55.2% during the 4th quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 7,837 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,073,000 after purchasing an additional 2,789 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in American Financial Group by 78.3% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 333,078 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $44,832,000 after purchasing an additional 146,237 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in shares of American Financial Group by 17.4% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 49,796 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $6,833,000 after purchasing an additional 7,365 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Argent Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of American Financial Group by 9.8% during the 4th quarter. Argent Capital Management LLC now owns 31,362 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $4,294,000 after buying an additional 2,787 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.37% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Insider Transactions at American Financial Group

In related news, Director Gregory G. Joseph bought 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $121.00 per share, for a total transaction of $363,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 57,477 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,954,717. This represents a 5.51 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 14.50% of the company’s stock.

American Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of AFG opened at $120.30 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.10 billion, a PE ratio of 11.38 and a beta of 0.83. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $132.44 and its 200 day moving average price is $134.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.53 and a quick ratio of 0.53. American Financial Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $118.97 and a 12-month high of $150.19.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The insurance provider reported $3.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.15 by ($0.03). American Financial Group had a return on equity of 20.30% and a net margin of 10.66%. Equities research analysts forecast that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 10.5 EPS for the current year.

American Financial Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 24th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 14th were issued a dividend of $0.80 per share. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.66%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, January 14th. American Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.27%.

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.