Van ECK Associates Corp Takes Position in American Financial Group, Inc. $AFG

Van ECK Associates Corp acquired a new position in shares of American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 57,496 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $8,046,000. Van ECK Associates Corp owned about 0.07% of American Financial Group as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in American Financial Group during the second quarter valued at about $1,079,329,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 2.3% in the 4th 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 in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 1.7% in the 4th 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 in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of American Financial Group by 19.0% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,506,510 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $192,395,000 after purchasing an additional 240,509 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its position in shares of American Financial Group by 33.2% during 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 currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on American Financial Group from $148.00 to $153.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of American Financial Group from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of American Financial Group from $140.00 to $156.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of American Financial Group from $158.00 to $173.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of American Financial Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 15th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $156.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other American Financial Group news, VP Mark A. Weiss sold 2,813 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.76, for a total value of $407,209.88. Following the sale, the vice president owned 6,648 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $962,364.48. This trade represents a 29.73% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Michelle A. Gillis sold 2,247 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $139.00, for a total value of $312,333.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 13,135 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,825,765. The trade was a 14.61% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 16,430 shares of company stock valued at $2,255,061 in the last quarter. Insiders own 16.90% of the company’s stock.

American Financial Group Price Performance

AFG opened at $142.00 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 0.49 and a quick ratio of 0.49. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $142.60 and its 200 day simple moving average is $135.14. The firm has a market cap of $11.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.41 and a beta of 0.60. American Financial Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $123.09 and a 1 year high of $150.02.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The insurance provider reported $2.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.32 by $0.50. American Financial Group had a return on equity of 20.35% and a net margin of 11.51%.The firm had revenue of $2.03 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.85 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.14 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 12.13 earnings per share for the current year.

American Financial Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 24th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 15th were given a dividend of $0.88 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 15th. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. American Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 30.77%.

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.