MetLife Investment Management LLC Purchases 3,394 Shares of American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG)

MetLife Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG - Free Report) by 9.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 40,682 shares of the insurance provider's stock after purchasing an additional 3,394 shares during the period. MetLife Investment Management LLC's holdings in American Financial Group were worth $5,571,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. boosted its stake in shares of American Financial Group by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 5,798 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $794,000 after buying an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Horan Securities Inc. boosted its stake in American Financial Group by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Horan Securities Inc. now owns 2,595 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $355,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the period. Shoker Investment Counsel Inc. grew its stake in shares of American Financial Group by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Shoker Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 2,648 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $363,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of American Financial Group by 4.6% during the 4th quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 2,226 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $305,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. grew its position in American Financial Group by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 4,127 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $565,000 after buying an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. 64.37% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other American Financial Group news, Director Gregory G. Joseph purchased 3,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $121.00 per share, with a total value of $363,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 57,477 shares in the company, valued at $6,954,717. This represents a 5.51 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 17.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on shares of American Financial Group from $144.00 to $126.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th.

American Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AFG traded down $0.27 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $127.04. 26,203 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 371,553. American Financial Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $114.73 and a twelve month high of $150.19. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $125.95 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $132.31. 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 company has a market cap of $10.63 billion, a PE ratio of 12.02 and a beta of 0.59.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The insurance provider reported $3.12 earnings per share (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%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 10.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th were issued a dividend of $0.80 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 15th. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.52%. American Financial Group's 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.