American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) Shares Purchased by Franklin Resources Inc.

Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) by 17.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 49,796 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after buying an additional 7,365 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc.’s holdings in American Financial Group were worth $6,833,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. FMR LLC raised its position in shares of American Financial Group by 3.8% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,516,351 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $742,501,000 after purchasing an additional 202,522 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its holdings in American Financial Group by 4.0% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,693,356 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $362,526,000 after buying an additional 104,172 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in American Financial Group by 10.2% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,553,207 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $208,699,000 after buying an additional 143,820 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 0.9% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 836,619 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $102,921,000 after buying an additional 7,797 shares during the period. Finally, Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. increased its position in shares of American Financial Group by 0.4% in the second quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 576,174 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $70,881,000 after acquiring an additional 2,389 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.37% of the company’s stock.

American Financial Group Stock Performance

AFG stock opened at $136.98 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $11.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.84 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 0.53. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $138.17 and a 200 day simple moving average of $132.53. American Financial Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $115.64 and a 52 week high of $150.19.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The insurance provider reported $2.31 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.51 by ($0.20). American Financial Group had a net margin of 10.84% and a return on equity of 19.97%. The company had revenue of $2.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.80 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.45 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 10.8% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 10.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Financial Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a None dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th were paid a dividend of $4.00 per share. This is a positive change from American Financial Group’s previous None dividend of $1.00. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 15th. American Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is 29.99%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AFG has been the subject of several research analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of American Financial Group from $135.00 to $143.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Piper Sandler raised their target price on American Financial Group from $135.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th.

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.