Legal & General Group Plc Sells 99,802 Shares of American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG)

Legal & General Group Plc trimmed its holdings in American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG - Free Report) by 29.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 241,771 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 99,802 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc owned 0.29% of American Financial Group worth $33,106,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. UMB Bank n.a. increased its position in shares of American Financial Group by 86.8% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 340 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 158 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its position in shares of American Financial Group by 91.2% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 520 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $71,000 after acquiring an additional 248 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP boosted its position in shares of American Financial Group by 301.1% during the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 702 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $94,000 after acquiring an additional 527 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in American Financial Group by 31.6% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,059 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $145,000 after acquiring an additional 254 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nicolet Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in American Financial Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $212,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.37% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered 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.

American Financial Group Trading Up 0.5 %

AFG traded up $0.64 during trading on Thursday, reaching $128.03. 431,047 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 371,931. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $125.39 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $132.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.71 billion, a PE ratio of 12.11 and a beta of 0.59. American Financial Group, Inc. has a one year low of $114.73 and a one year high of $150.19. 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 (NYSE:AFG - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The insurance provider reported $3.12 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.15 by ($0.03). American Financial Group had a return on equity of 20.30% and a net margin of 10.66%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that American Financial Group, Inc. will post 10.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be paid a $0.80 dividend. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.50%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 15th. American Financial Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 30.27%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other American Financial Group news, Director Gregory G. Joseph bought 3,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were bought at an average price of $121.00 per share, for a total transaction of $363,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 57,477 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,954,717. This trade represents a 5.51 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 17.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

American Financial Group Company 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.