American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) Stake Boosted by Creative Planning

Creative Planning increased its stake in American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 27,793 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 329 shares during the period. Creative Planning’s holdings in American Financial Group were worth $3,741,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sei Investments Co. grew its position in American Financial Group by 0.3% in the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 26,059 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $3,206,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. increased its position in American Financial Group by 2.2% in the 1st quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 4,674 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $638,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co raised its stake in American Financial Group by 5.0% during the 2nd quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 2,105 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $259,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in American Financial Group by 44.3% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 433 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $59,000 after acquiring an additional 133 shares during the period. Finally, DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale grew its stake in shares of American Financial Group by 2.0% in the first quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 6,882 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $937,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.37% of the company’s stock.

American Financial Group Stock Performance

AFG opened at $129.44 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The firm has a market cap of $10.86 billion, a PE ratio of 12.21 and a beta of 0.78. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $134.18 and a 200-day simple moving average of $129.67. American Financial Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $106.62 and a fifty-two week high of $138.81.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The insurance provider reported $2.56 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.45 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $1.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.72 billion. American Financial Group had a net margin of 11.06% and a return on equity of 21.16%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.38 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 10.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Financial Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 15th were given a dividend of $0.80 per share. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.47%. This is a boost from American Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.71. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, October 15th. American Financial Group’s payout ratio is presently 30.19%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AFG has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Citigroup downgraded shares of American Financial Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $144.00 to $137.00 in a report on Friday, June 28th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of American Financial Group from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th.

About American Financial Group

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.