Roman Butler Fullerton & Co. Takes $444,000 Position in American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG)

Roman Butler Fullerton & Co. bought a new stake in shares of American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 3,493 shares of the insurance provider's stock, valued at approximately $444,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Intech Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of American Financial Group by 57.1% during the fourth quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 38,623 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $5,289,000 after purchasing an additional 14,045 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in American Financial Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $5,127,000. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its holdings in American Financial Group by 8.9% in the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 7,296 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $958,000 after acquiring an additional 594 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 207,285 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in American Financial Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,875,000. Institutional investors own 64.37% of the company's stock.

American Financial Group Stock Performance

AFG traded up $1.11 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $123.80. 703,172 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 409,339. The company's fifty day moving average price is $125.08 and its 200-day moving average price is $128.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.00 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. American Financial Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $114.73 and a 52-week high of $150.19.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The insurance provider reported $1.81 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.17 by ($0.36). The firm had revenue of $1.58 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.74 billion. American Financial Group had a net margin of 9.66% and a return on equity of 18.34%. The firm's revenue was down 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.76 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 10.5 EPS for the current year.

American Financial Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 25th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 15th were issued a $0.80 dividend. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 15th. American Financial Group's payout ratio is 33.61%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on AFG shares. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of American Financial Group from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on shares of American Financial Group from $126.00 to $125.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have given a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, American Financial Group presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $138.75.

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.