American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) Issues Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.17 EPS

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) announced its earnings results on Tuesday. The insurance provider reported $3.97 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.80 by $0.17, Zacks reports. American Financial Group had a net margin of 11.51% and a return on equity of 20.35%.

American Financial Group Trading Down 1.4%

Shares of NYSE AFG traded down $2.11 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $153.06. 725,679 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 504,195. American Financial Group has a 1 year low of $123.09 and a 1 year high of $156.24. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $144.01 and a 200-day moving average price of $136.54. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.38 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a quick ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38.

American Financial Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 15th were issued a $0.97 dividend. This is a boost from American Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.88. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 15th. This represents a $3.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. American Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 33.92%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AFG has been the topic of several analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on shares of American Financial Group from $153.00 to $147.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 12th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of American Financial Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, October 17th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of American Financial Group from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on American Financial Group from $140.00 to $156.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, August 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of American Financial Group from $175.00 to $166.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $152.75.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Brian S. Hertzman sold 950 shares of American Financial Group stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $142.87, for a total value of $135,726.50. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 11,123 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,589,143.01. This trade represents a 7.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Mark A. Weiss sold 2,813 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.76, for a total value of $407,209.88. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 6,648 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $962,364.48. This trade represents a 29.73% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 16.90% of the company’s stock.

About American Financial Group

American Financial Group, Inc (NYSE:AFG) is an insurance holding company headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio. Through its Great American Insurance Group operations, the company primarily provides property and casualty insurance, with an emphasis on specialty commercial products and markets.

Its insurance offerings serve businesses, organizations and individuals across a range of industries. Product lines have included commercial property and liability coverage, workers’ compensation, transportation, agriculture and crop insurance, marine and other specialty risks.