American International Group, Inc. (NYSE:AIG) Short Interest Update

American International Group, Inc. (NYSE:AIG - Get Free Report) saw a large increase in short interest in March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 16,230,000 shares, an increase of 23.3% from the February 28th total of 13,160,000 shares. Currently, 2.8% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 4,770,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.4 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have weighed in on AIG. HSBC upgraded American International Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $93.00 target price for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of American International Group from $76.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of American International Group from $76.00 to $77.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on American International Group from $79.00 to $87.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, Hsbc Global Res upgraded American International Group from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $87.12.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director John G. Rice acquired 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $77.00 per share, for a total transaction of $770,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 10,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $770,000. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.61% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On American International Group

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AIG. Artemis Investment Management LLP increased its holdings in American International Group by 115.9% in the 4th quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP now owns 274,246 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $19,965,000 after buying an additional 147,235 shares in the last quarter. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of American International Group by 5.2% during the 4th quarter. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. now owns 70,816 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $5,155,000 after buying an additional 3,490 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its position in American International Group by 54.3% during the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 12,690 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $924,000 after acquiring an additional 4,468 shares during the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of American International Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,260,000. Finally, Williams & Novak LLC purchased a new position in shares of American International Group in the fourth quarter worth approximately $279,000. 90.60% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American International Group Trading Down 8.5 %

Shares of AIG stock traded down $7.37 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $78.83. The stock had a trading volume of 6,406,160 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,405,168. The company has a current ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The firm has a market capitalization of $46.77 billion, a PE ratio of -37.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.63. American International Group has a 52-week low of $69.00 and a 52-week high of $88.07. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $79.60 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $76.36.

American International Group (NYSE:AIG - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The insurance provider reported $1.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.33 by ($0.03). American International Group had a positive return on equity of 8.01% and a negative net margin of 4.25%. Equities analysts expect that American International Group will post 6.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American International Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th were issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.03%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. American International Group's payout ratio is -76.92%.

About American International Group

American International Group, Inc offers insurance products for commercial, institutional, and individual customers in North America and internationally. It operates through three segments: General Insurance, Life and Retirement, and Other Operations. The General Insurance segment provides commercial and industrial property insurance, including business interruption and package insurance that cover exposure to made and natural disasters; general liability, environmental, commercial automobile liability, workers' compensation, excess casualty, and crisis management insurance products; and professional liability insurance.