Here Is Why Investors Are Talking Netflix, Lloyds Banking Group and Others Today

US stocks are falling again today as a sign that investors are not done with their post-Brexit trading just yet. Positive economic data released earlier failed to contain the slide. A couple of financial stocks hold the headlines today on the back of M&A activity and Brexit uncertainty, while a jewelry stock is soaring following a recent financial report. We’ll also take a look at an online streaming service that just got downgraded.

While there are many metrics that investors can assess in the investment process, hedge fund sentiment is something that is often overlooked. However, hedge funds and other institutional investors allocate significant resources while making their bets and their long-term focus makes them the perfect investors to emulate. This is supported by our research, which determined that following the small-cap stocks that hedge funds are collectively bullish on can help a smaller investor beat the S&P 500 by around 95 basis points per month (see more details here).

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New Bid For National Interstate Corporation

American Financial Group Inc (NYSE:AFG) has boosted its bid for National Interstate Corporation (NASDAQ:NATL) today, announcing it is ready now to pay $32 per share, up from $30 a share initially offered in March. The new bid price would value National Interstate Corporation (NASDAQ:NATL) at $637.8 million. American Financial Group Inc (NYSE:AFG) said the bid was “best and final offer” and has stated its belief that the offer will be accepted. The stock is slightly lower this morning, while shares of National Interstate jumped nearly 4% to $31.15 apiece following the announcement.

On March 7, American Financial Group Inc (NYSE:AFG) announced its intention to acquire National Interstate Corporation (NASDAQ:NATL), offering shareholders a premium of roughly 33% over the price of shares at that moment. Although one would expect the stock to drop because of arbitrageurs trying to scrap some profits, American Financial Group’s stock is up by 5.6% since the announcement. At the end of the first quarter, only 16 of the funds tracked by Insider Monkey were invested in American Financial Group, unchanged from the previous quarter. National Interstate Corporation, on the other hand, saw increased interest as the number of long hedge fund positions rose to six at the end of March, from four registered a quarter before.