Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Grows Holdings in American Financial Group, Inc. $AFG

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) by 19.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,506,510 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 240,509 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned 1.81% of American Financial Group worth $192,395,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Steph & Co. lifted its position in shares of American Financial Group by 11.5% in the first quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 787 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $101,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of American Financial Group by 4.4% during the first quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,975 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $252,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. raised its stake in American Financial Group by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. now owns 8,307 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,061,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares during the period. JB Capital LLC raised its stake in American Financial Group by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. JB Capital LLC now owns 4,268 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $583,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares during the period. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in American Financial Group by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 4,546 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $621,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.37% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider David Lawrence Thompson, Jr. sold 11,370 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.05, for a total value of $1,535,518.50. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 584,098 shares in the company, valued at $78,882,434.90. The trade was a 1.91% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Michelle A. Gillis sold 2,247 shares of American Financial Group stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $139.00, for a total value of $312,333.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 13,135 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,825,765. This represents a 14.61% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 16.90% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on AFG. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of American Financial Group from $140.00 to $148.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of American Financial Group from $158.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Piper Sandler raised their target price on shares of American Financial Group from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of American Financial Group in a report on Thursday, June 11th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $150.75.

American Financial Group Stock Performance

NYSE AFG opened at $143.51 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 0.48 and a quick ratio of 0.48. American Financial Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $122.11 and a 1-year high of $150.02. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $136.83 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $132.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.92 billion, a PE ratio of 13.64 and a beta of 0.62.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The insurance provider reported $2.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.54 by ($0.07). American Financial Group had a return on equity of 19.50% and a net margin of 10.76%.The firm had revenue of $1.85 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.70 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.81 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 11.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Financial Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 24th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 15th were paid a $0.88 dividend. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 15th. American Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.46%.

American Financial Group Company 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.