Janney Montgomery Scott LLC Buys Shares of 21,991 American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG)

Janney Montgomery Scott LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG – Get Rating) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 21,991 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,703,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of AFG. Bishop Rock Capital L.P. boosted its position in American Financial Group by 5,124.6% during the 2nd quarter. Bishop Rock Capital L.P. now owns 5,607,646 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $40,398,000 after acquiring an additional 5,500,315 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in American Financial Group by 4.3% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,544,354 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,098,609,000 after acquiring an additional 313,115 shares in the last quarter. Bain Capital Public Equity Management II LLC bought a new stake in American Financial Group during the 2nd quarter valued at $43,458,000. Prudential Financial Inc. boosted its position in American Financial Group by 253.0% during the 2nd quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 297,976 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $41,361,000 after acquiring an additional 213,563 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC boosted its position in American Financial Group by 70.2% during the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 405,373 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $56,270,000 after acquiring an additional 167,239 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 64.04% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. StockNews.com assumed coverage on American Financial Group in a research report on Wednesday, October 12th. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on American Financial Group from $146.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 22nd. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price objective on American Financial Group from $162.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other American Financial Group news, insider John B. Berding sold 12,745 shares of American Financial Group stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $146.24, for a total transaction of $1,863,828.80. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 36,083 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,276,777.92. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other American Financial Group news, insider John B. Berding sold 4,000 shares of American Financial Group stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.87, for a total transaction of $595,480.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 36,083 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,371,676.21. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider John B. Berding sold 12,745 shares of American Financial Group stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $146.24, for a total value of $1,863,828.80. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 36,083 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,276,777.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 14.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

American Financial Group Stock Up 0.7 %

American Financial Group stock opened at $141.22 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 0.46 and a quick ratio of 0.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.31 and a beta of 0.83. American Financial Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $119.01 and a 1-year high of $152.29. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $139.64 and a 200-day moving average price of $134.64.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG – Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 2nd. The insurance provider reported $2.24 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.20 by $0.04. American Financial Group had a return on equity of 24.41% and a net margin of 14.22%. The firm had revenue of $1.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.51 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.71 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 15.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 11.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Financial Group Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 13th will be given a dividend of $0.63 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, January 12th. This represents a $2.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.78%. American Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.97%.

American Financial Group Company Profile

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American Financial Group, Inc, an insurance holding company, provides specialty property and casualty insurance products in the United States. It 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.