American Century Companies Inc. Buys 13,351 Shares of American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG)

American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG - Free Report) by 12.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 121,841 shares of the insurance provider's stock after acquiring an additional 13,351 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. owned 0.15% of American Financial Group worth $16,684,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. raised its position in American Financial Group by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 5,798 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $794,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Horan Securities Inc. increased its stake in shares of American Financial Group by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Horan Securities Inc. now owns 2,595 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $355,000 after buying an additional 81 shares during the period. Shoker Investment Counsel Inc. raised its holdings in American Financial Group by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Shoker Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 2,648 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $363,000 after buying an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its position in 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 buying an additional 97 shares during the period. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its position in American Financial Group by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 12,040 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $1,649,000 after buying an additional 101 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.37% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods downgraded shares of American Financial Group from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and dropped their price target for the company from $164.00 to $144.00 in a research note on Friday, February 7th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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. Company insiders own 14.50% of the company's stock.

American Financial Group Trading Down 6.5 %

Shares of AFG stock traded down $8.50 on Friday, hitting $121.78. The company had a trading volume of 510,400 shares, compared to its average volume of 363,236. American Financial Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $118.97 and a twelve month high of $150.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 0.53. The firm has a market cap of $10.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.52 and a beta of 0.79. The stock's 50-day moving average is $127.54 and its two-hundred day moving average is $133.64.

American Financial Group (NYSE:AFG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The insurance provider reported $3.12 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $3.15 by ($0.03). American Financial Group had a net margin of 10.66% and a return on equity of 20.30%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate 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 declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be given a dividend of $0.80 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 15th. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.63%. American Financial Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.27%.

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.