Bridgewater Associates LP Makes New Investment in American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG)

Bridgewater Associates LP purchased a new stake in American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 5,367 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $722,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new position in American Financial Group during the 2nd quarter valued at about $30,000. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Financial Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $38,000. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in shares of American Financial Group by 44.3% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 433 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $59,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares in the last quarter. nVerses Capital LLC lifted its stake in American Financial Group by 200.0% in the 2nd quarter. nVerses Capital LLC now owns 600 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $74,000 after buying an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in American Financial Group during the 2nd quarter valued at $85,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.37% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on AFG. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on American Financial Group from $135.00 to $143.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of American Financial Group from $135.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th.

American Financial Group Stock Performance

American Financial Group stock opened at $143.91 on Tuesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $137.01 and a 200 day moving average price of $131.49. The company has a current ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. American Financial Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $114.73 and a 52 week high of $150.19. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.49 and a beta of 0.79.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 5th. The insurance provider reported $2.31 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.51 by ($0.20). American Financial Group had a return on equity of 19.97% and a net margin of 10.84%. The company had revenue of $2.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.80 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.45 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 10.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 10.73 earnings per share for the current year.

American Financial Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a None dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 26th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th were issued a $4.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 15th. This is a boost from American Financial Group’s previous None dividend of $1.00. American Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.99%.

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.