Allstate (NYSE:ALL) Upgraded to Buy at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Allstate (NYSE:ALL) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report released on Tuesday morning.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of Allstate from $235.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Barclays decreased 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. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Allstate from $186.00 to $187.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Argus raised Allstate from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Evercore ISI upgraded Allstate from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Allstate has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $220.80.

Allstate Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ALL opened at $183.16 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a current ratio of 0.36. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $196.80 and its 200 day simple moving average is $194.17. The stock has a market cap of $48.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.78, a PEG ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.36. Allstate has a fifty-two week low of $156.66 and a fifty-two week high of $212.91.

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

Allstate Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th were issued a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. This is a boost from Allstate’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.92. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.18%. Allstate’s dividend payout ratio is currently 23.54%.

Allstate announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, February 26th that permits the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the insurance provider to buy up to 3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Jesse E. Merten sold 40,102 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $186.53, for a total value of $7,480,226.06. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 18,115 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,378,990.95. This trade represents a 68.88 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Allstate

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ALL. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new stake in Allstate during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Twin Tree Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Allstate in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC bought a new position in Allstate during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. purchased a new position in Allstate during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda bought a new stake in Allstate in the fourth quarter worth $29,000. 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.