Citigroup Raises American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) Price Target to $150.00

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) had its price target upped by Citigroup from $139.00 to $150.00 in a report released on Monday morning, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a buy rating on the insurance provider’s stock.

A number of other research firms have also recently issued reports on AFG. Janney Montgomery Scott initiated coverage on American Financial Group in a report on Thursday, December 14th. They issued a buy rating and a $135.00 target price on the stock. Piper Sandler lowered American Financial Group from an overweight rating to a neutral rating and set a $129.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, American Financial Group presently has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $133.50.

American Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:AFG opened at $136.80 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 0.47 and a quick ratio of 0.47. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $125.45 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $117.75. American Financial Group has a fifty-two week low of $105.22 and a fifty-two week high of $137.03. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.61 and a beta of 0.78.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 7th. The insurance provider reported $2.84 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.81 by $0.03. American Financial Group had a net margin of 10.89% and a return on equity of 22.14%. The business had revenue of $1.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.67 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.99 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that American Financial Group will post 11.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Financial Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a None dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 28th. Investors of record on Friday, February 16th were issued a $2.50 dividend. This is a boost from American Financial Group’s previous None dividend of $1.50. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 15th. American Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.26%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Brian S. Hertzman sold 1,067 shares of American Financial Group stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $126.95, for a total value of $135,455.65. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 10,583 shares in the company, valued at $1,343,511.85. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, Director James E. Evans sold 2,274 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $128.64, for a total transaction of $292,527.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 105,302 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,546,049.28. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Brian S. Hertzman sold 1,067 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $126.95, for a total value of $135,455.65. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 10,583 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,343,511.85. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 14,843 shares of company stock worth $1,854,746 over the last three months. 14.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On American Financial Group

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of AFG. Tudor Investment Corp Et Al grew its position in shares of American Financial Group by 1,096.3% in the 3rd quarter. Tudor Investment Corp Et Al now owns 20,481 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $2,287,000 after purchasing an additional 18,769 shares during the period. Qsemble Capital Management LP acquired a new position in shares of American Financial Group in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $692,000. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in shares of American Financial Group by 4.0% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 635,387 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $70,954,000 after purchasing an additional 24,630 shares during the period. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. grew its position in shares of American Financial Group by 30.8% in the 3rd quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 43,952 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $4,909,000 after purchasing an additional 10,345 shares during the period. Finally, Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky grew its position in shares of American Financial Group by 93.7% in the 3rd quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 23,824 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $2,660,000 after purchasing an additional 11,522 shares during the period. 64.37% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.