What is Zacks Research’s Forecast for AFG Q3 Earnings?

American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) – Equities researchers at Zacks Research increased their Q3 2026 earnings per share estimates for shares of American Financial Group in a note issued to investors on Tuesday, August 18th. Zacks Research analyst Team now expects that the insurance provider will post earnings of $3.11 per share for the quarter, up from their previous forecast of $2.75. The consensus estimate for American Financial Group’s current full-year earnings is $11.73 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for American Financial Group’s FY2026 earnings at $11.72 EPS, Q1 2027 earnings at $2.71 EPS, Q3 2027 earnings at $2.80 EPS, Q4 2027 earnings at $3.75 EPS, FY2027 earnings at $11.95 EPS, Q1 2028 earnings at $2.86 EPS and FY2028 earnings at $11.83 EPS.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The insurance provider reported $2.82 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.32 by $0.50. The business had revenue of $2.03 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.85 billion. American Financial Group had a return on equity of 20.35% and a net margin of 11.51%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.14 earnings per share.

AFG has been the subject of a number of other reports. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of American Financial Group from $140.00 to $156.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on American Financial Group from $158.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of American Financial Group from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on American Financial Group from $148.00 to $153.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised American Financial Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, August 15th. Two equities 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, American Financial Group has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $156.00.

American Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of AFG stock opened at $143.41 on Thursday. American Financial Group has a fifty-two week low of $123.09 and a fifty-two week high of $150.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a current ratio of 0.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.54 and a beta of 0.62. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $140.87 and its 200-day simple moving average is $134.25.

American Financial Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 24th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 15th were issued a dividend of $0.88 per share. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a 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 30.77%.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Financial Group

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 transaction of $1,535,518.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 584,098 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $78,882,434.90. The trade was a 1.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, VP Mark A. Weiss sold 2,813 shares of American Financial Group stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.76, for a total value of $407,209.88. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 6,648 shares in the company, valued at approximately $962,364.48. The trade was a 29.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 16,430 shares of company stock valued at $2,255,061 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 16.90% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On American Financial Group

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of AFG. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in American Financial Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,079,329,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in American Financial Group by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,567,721 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $350,956,000 after purchasing an additional 57,246 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in American Financial Group by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,732,557 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $236,645,000 after purchasing an additional 29,731 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in American Financial Group by 19.0% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,506,510 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $192,395,000 after purchasing an additional 240,509 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in American Financial Group by 33.2% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,026,783 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $149,623,000 after purchasing an additional 255,693 shares during the last quarter. 64.37% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting American Financial Group

Here are the key news stories impacting American Financial Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks Research raised several EPS forecasts. Its FY2026 estimate increased from $11.00 to $11.72, FY2027 rose from $11.77 to $11.95, and FY2028 increased from $11.67 to $11.83. Zacks also lifted estimates for Q3 2026, Q1 and Q2 2027, and Q1 and Q2 2028, indicating better expected earnings momentum for the specialty insurer. American Financial Group stock information
• Positive Sentiment: Near-term earnings expectations improved materially for Q3 2026. Zacks raised its forecast to $3.11 per share from $2.75. That outlook supports the company’s recent operating strength, following its latest reported quarter in which AFG exceeded consensus earnings and revenue estimates.
• Neutral Sentiment: The current full-year consensus remains $11.73 per share. Although Zacks’ estimates for future years are higher, the revisions do not yet translate into a meaningful increase in the consensus forecast for the current fiscal year. This may limit immediate buying interest.
• Neutral Sentiment: AFG’s income profile remains attractive to yield-focused investors. A recent analysis highlighted the company’s investment-grade “baby bonds” and their roughly 7.7% yield, though that product-focused discussion is more relevant to fixed-income investors than to the common stock.
• Negative Sentiment: A few estimates were trimmed. Zacks reduced its Q4 2026 EPS forecast from $3.37 to $3.32 and its Q3 2027 forecast from $2.81 to $2.80. These cuts are small, but they partially offset the broader upward revisions and may contribute to cautious trading.

About American Financial Group

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.