Canada Pension Plan Investment Board Sells 116,800 Shares of Cincinnati Financial Co. (NASDAQ:CINF)

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board trimmed its holdings in Cincinnati Financial Co. (NASDAQ:CINF - Free Report) by 59.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 81,100 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 116,800 shares during the quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board owned about 0.05% of Cincinnati Financial worth $11,654,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in CINF. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Cincinnati Financial during the 4th quarter valued at about $223,959,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Cincinnati Financial by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 6,006,254 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $863,099,000 after buying an additional 224,033 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Cincinnati Financial by 5.0% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,930,022 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $563,323,000 after acquiring an additional 185,705 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Cincinnati Financial by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,167,705 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $2,754,399,000 after acquiring an additional 173,417 shares during the period. Finally, California Public Employees Retirement System raised its position in shares of Cincinnati Financial by 33.5% during the 4th quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 668,341 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $96,041,000 after acquiring an additional 167,898 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.24% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CINF has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Roth Mkm boosted their price objective on shares of Cincinnati Financial from $140.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on shares of Cincinnati Financial from $182.00 to $148.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Cincinnati Financial from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $147.40.

Cincinnati Financial Stock Performance

NASDAQ:CINF traded up $1.10 on Wednesday, hitting $134.05. The company's stock had a trading volume of 735,084 shares, compared to its average volume of 671,901. The company has a current ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 8.30 and a beta of 0.53. Cincinnati Financial Co. has a one year low of $109.93 and a one year high of $161.75. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $139.29 and a two-hundred day moving average of $142.43.

Cincinnati Financial (NASDAQ:CINF - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The insurance provider reported $3.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.90 by $1.24. Cincinnati Financial had a net margin of 20.22% and a return on equity of 9.01%. Research analysts predict that Cincinnati Financial Co. will post 5.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Cincinnati Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 24th were given a $0.87 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 24th. This is a boost from Cincinnati Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.60%. Cincinnati Financial's payout ratio is presently 23.97%.

About Cincinnati Financial

Cincinnati Financial Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides property casualty insurance products in the United States. It operates through five segments: Commercial Lines Insurance, Personal Lines Insurance, Excess and Surplus Lines Insurance, Life Insurance, and Investments. The Commercial Lines Insurance segment offers coverage for commercial casualty, commercial property, commercial auto, and workers' compensation.