Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD Sells 17,912 Shares of American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG)

Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD cut its holdings in shares of American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG - Free Report) by 14.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 104,228 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 17,912 shares during the quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD owned about 0.12% of American Financial Group worth $14,273,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of AFG. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of American Financial Group by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 8,287,861 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $1,134,857,000 after purchasing an additional 99,560 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in American Financial Group by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,595,346 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $218,146,000 after purchasing an additional 42,139 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in American Financial Group by 26.2% during the fourth 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 period. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in American Financial Group by 6.8% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 996,724 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $136,481,000 after buying an additional 63,193 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new position in American Financial Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $122,419,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.37% of the company's stock.

American Financial Group Stock Up 0.7 %

AFG stock traded up $0.93 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $130.04. 395,397 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 374,345. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.30 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a current ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $126.62 and a 200-day moving average price of $132.02. American Financial Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $114.73 and a 12-month high of $150.19.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 6th. The insurance provider reported $1.81 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.17 by ($0.36). American Financial Group had a net margin of 10.66% and a return on equity of 20.30%. On average, analysts anticipate that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 10.5 EPS for the current year.

American Financial Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 25th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 15th were given a $0.80 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 15th. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.46%. American Financial Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 30.27%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on American Financial Group from $144.00 to $126.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 9th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Gregory G. Joseph bought 3,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $121.00 per share, for a total transaction of $363,000.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 57,477 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,954,717. The trade was a 5.51 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. 17.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.