Nicolet Advisory Services LLC Buys New Holdings in American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG)

Nicolet Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 1,632 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $212,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of AFG. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of American Financial Group by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,595,346 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $218,146,000 after buying an additional 42,139 shares during the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI boosted its position in American Financial Group by 1,989.5% during the fourth quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 35,104 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $4,807,000 after purchasing an additional 33,424 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,052 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $692,000 after purchasing an additional 164 shares during the last quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 12.1% in the fourth quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 5,001 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $685,000 after purchasing an additional 539 shares during the last quarter. Finally, California Public Employees Retirement System raised its position in shares of American Financial Group by 4.9% in the fourth quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 199,181 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $27,274,000 after purchasing an additional 9,304 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 64.37% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

American Financial Group Stock Down 6.5 %

AFG stock opened at $121.78 on Friday. American Financial Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $118.97 and a fifty-two week high of $150.19. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $10.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.52 and a beta of 0.79. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $127.54 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $133.64.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The insurance provider reported $3.12 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.15 by ($0.03). American Financial Group had a net margin of 10.66% and a return on equity of 20.30%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 10.5 earnings per share for the current year.

American Financial Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be given a dividend of $0.80 per share. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 15th. American Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 30.27%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Gregory G. Joseph bought 3,000 shares of American Financial Group stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $121.00 per share, with a total value of $363,000.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 57,477 shares in the company, valued at $6,954,717. This trade represents a 5.51 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 14.50% of the company’s stock.

American Financial Group Profile

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.