Bank of America Corp DE Boosts Stake in American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG)

Bank of America Corp DE grew its stake in shares of American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG - Free Report) by 58.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 189,379 shares of the insurance provider's stock after buying an additional 70,218 shares during the quarter. Bank of America Corp DE owned 0.23% of American Financial Group worth $25,932,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Intech Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of American Financial Group by 57.1% during the 4th quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 38,623 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $5,289,000 after buying an additional 14,045 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. raised its position in shares of American Financial Group by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 151,771 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $20,782,000 after buying an additional 3,911 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd raised its position in shares of American Financial Group by 55.2% during the 4th quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 7,837 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $1,073,000 after buying an additional 2,789 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in American Financial Group in the 4th quarter worth $5,127,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in American Financial Group by 26.2% in 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 purchasing an additional 207,285 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.37% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on shares of American Financial Group from $126.00 to $125.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 9th.

American Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AFG opened at $126.66 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $10.60 billion, a PE ratio of 11.98 and a beta of 0.72. The company's fifty day moving average is $126.17 and its 200 day moving average is $131.58. American Financial Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $114.73 and a 52 week high of $150.19. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The insurance provider reported $1.81 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.17 by ($0.36). The business had revenue of $1.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.74 billion. American Financial Group had a return on equity of 20.30% and a net margin of 10.66%. American Financial Group's revenue for the quarter was down 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.76 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 10.5 earnings per share for the current year.

American Financial Group Announces Dividend

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 $0.80 dividend. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 15th. American Financial Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.61%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Gregory G. Joseph purchased 3,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $121.00 per share, with a total value of $363,000.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 57,477 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,954,717. The trade was a 5.51% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 17.40% 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.

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