Marshall Wace LLP Makes New $1.51 Million Investment in American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG)

Marshall Wace LLP acquired a new stake in American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 12,298 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,513,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of AFG. Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new position in American Financial Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $30,000. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Financial Group in the second quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Covestor Ltd increased its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 402.3% in the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 432 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $59,000 after purchasing an additional 346 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 44.3% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 433 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $59,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares during the period. Finally, Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC grew its position in American Financial Group by 10,460.0% in the 1st quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC now owns 528 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $72,000 after buying an additional 523 shares during the last quarter. 64.37% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Citigroup downgraded shares of American Financial Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $144.00 to $137.00 in a research report on Friday, June 28th.

American Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of AFG opened at $138.65 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $131.95 and its two-hundred day moving average is $129.57. American Financial Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $105.22 and a twelve month high of $138.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.63 billion, a PE ratio of 13.27 and a beta of 0.78.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The insurance provider reported $2.56 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.45 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $1.90 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.72 billion. American Financial Group had a return on equity of 21.16% and a net margin of 11.06%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.38 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 10.96 earnings per share for the current year.

American Financial Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 25th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 15th will be issued a $0.80 dividend. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.31%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 15th. This is an increase from American Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.71. American Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.62%.

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.