American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) Shares Acquired by Van ECK Associates Corp

Van ECK Associates Corp grew its stake in American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) by 0.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,040 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 101 shares during the quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in American Financial Group were worth $1,649,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. raised its stake in American Financial Group by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 5,798 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $794,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the period. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. grew its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 4.0% in the third quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 2,165 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $291,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 4.6% in the fourth quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 2,226 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $305,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Highland Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 6.5% in the fourth quarter. Highland Capital Management LLC now owns 1,746 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $239,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MML Investors Services LLC grew its holdings in American Financial Group by 3.5% during the 3rd quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 3,400 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $458,000 after acquiring an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. 64.37% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on AFG shares. BMO Capital Markets boosted 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 report on Friday, November 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods downgraded shares of American Financial Group from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $164.00 to $144.00 in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their price objective 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.

American Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of AFG opened at $119.80 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $132.83 and a 200-day simple moving average of $134.52. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The company has a market capitalization of $10.05 billion, a PE ratio of 11.33 and a beta of 0.83. American Financial Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $118.97 and a 52-week high of $150.19.

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

American Financial Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 24th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 14th were paid a $0.80 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, January 14th. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.67%. American Financial Group’s payout ratio is 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.