The Allstate Co. (NYSE:ALL) Receives $217.94 Average PT from Brokerages

Shares of The Allstate Co. (NYSE:ALL) have earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the sixteen research firms that are covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, one has given a hold recommendation, thirteen have given a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $219.80.

A number of equities analysts have commented on ALL shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on Allstate from $235.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Allstate from $186.00 to $187.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Allstate from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Allstate from $187.00 to $183.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised Allstate from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th.

Allstate Price Performance

ALL stock opened at $207.14 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $54.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.19, a P/E/G ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.47. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $196.18 and its 200 day moving average is $194.06. Allstate has a 52 week low of $156.66 and a 52 week high of $212.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a current ratio of 0.36.

Allstate (NYSE:ALL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The insurance provider reported $7.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.40 by $2.27. Allstate had a return on equity of 28.20% and a net margin of 7.28%. Research analysts predict that Allstate will post 18.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Allstate Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.93%. This is a positive change from Allstate’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.92. Allstate’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 23.54%.

Allstate announced that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, February 26th that allows the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the insurance provider to repurchase up to 3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Allstate

In related news, CFO Jesse E. Merten sold 40,102 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $186.53, for a total value of $7,480,226.06. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 18,115 shares in the company, valued at $3,378,990.95. This represents a 68.88 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. United Bank bought a new position in Allstate in the 3rd quarter worth about $209,000. Eagle Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Allstate by 38.0% in the third quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. now owns 10,497 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,067,000 after buying an additional 2,888 shares in the last quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Allstate during the third quarter valued at approximately $240,000. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Allstate by 4.9% during the third quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. now owns 6,396 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,212,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC raised its holdings in Allstate by 29.9% in the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 40,549 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $7,694,000 after acquiring an additional 9,336 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.47% of the company’s stock.

About Allstate

The Allstate Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides property and casualty, and other insurance products in the United States and Canada. It operates in five segments: Allstate Protection; Protection Services; Allstate Health and Benefits; Run-off Property-Liability; and Corporate and Other segments.