Swiss National Bank Has $27.59 Million Stake in American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG)

Swiss National Bank decreased its position in shares of American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) by 4.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 201,500 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 9,500 shares during the quarter. Swiss National Bank owned approximately 0.24% of American Financial Group worth $27,591,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,516,351 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $742,501,000 after acquiring an additional 202,522 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted 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 holdings in American Financial Group by 10.2% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,553,207 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $208,699,000 after buying an additional 143,820 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in American Financial Group by 26.2% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 997,340 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $136,566,000 after buying an additional 207,285 shares during the period. Finally, Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH lifted its holdings in American Financial Group by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH now owns 607,677 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $83,209,000 after buying an additional 3,580 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.37% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Gregory G. Joseph bought 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $121.00 per share, with a total value of $363,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 57,477 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,954,717. This represents a 5.51 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 14.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods downgraded American Financial Group from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $164.00 to $144.00 in a report on Friday, February 7th.

American Financial Group Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE:AFG opened at $126.57 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $10.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.97 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.53 and a quick ratio of 0.53. The business’s 50-day moving average is $129.24 and its 200-day moving average is $134.24. American Financial Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $118.97 and a 1 year high of $150.19.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The insurance provider reported $3.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.15 by ($0.03). American Financial Group had a net margin of 10.66% and a return on equity of 20.30%. Equities research analysts predict that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 10.5 earnings per share for the current year.

American Financial Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a special dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a $2.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. American Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is 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.