American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) Shares Bought by Vest Financial LLC

Vest Financial LLC boosted its stake in American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG - Free Report) by 62.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 17,795 shares of the insurance provider's stock after purchasing an additional 6,842 shares during the quarter. Vest Financial LLC's holdings in American Financial Group were worth $2,437,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in shares of American Financial Group by 78.3% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 333,078 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $44,832,000 after purchasing an additional 146,237 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 17.4% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 49,796 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $6,833,000 after acquiring an additional 7,365 shares in the last quarter. Argent Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 9.8% during the fourth quarter. Argent Capital Management LLC now owns 31,362 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $4,294,000 after acquiring an additional 2,787 shares in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of American Financial Group by 166.1% during the third quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 7,078 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $953,000 after buying an additional 4,418 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Everence Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of American Financial Group during the fourth quarter valued at $285,000. Institutional investors own 64.37% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on AFG. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on American Financial Group from $135.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods downgraded American Financial Group from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and decreased their target price for the company from $164.00 to $144.00 in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on American Financial Group from $135.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th.

American Financial Group Stock Down 1.6 %

AFG stock traded down $2.07 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $125.06. 295,784 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 375,928. American Financial Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $118.97 and a 12 month high of $150.19. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $135.44 and a 200 day simple moving average of $134.85. The company has a market capitalization of $10.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.83 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 0.53.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The insurance provider reported $3.12 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.15 by ($0.03). American Financial Group had a return on equity of 20.30% and a net margin of 10.66%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 10.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 24th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 14th were given a dividend of $0.80 per share. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.56%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, January 14th. American Financial Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 30.27%.

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.