Prudential Financial Inc. Increases Stock Holdings in The Allstate Co. (NYSE:ALL)

Prudential Financial Inc. grew its holdings in The Allstate Co. (NYSE:ALL - Free Report) by 1.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 727,936 shares of the insurance provider's stock after buying an additional 7,473 shares during the period. Prudential Financial Inc. owned 0.27% of Allstate worth $140,339,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in Allstate in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Allstate in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Twin Tree Management LP purchased a new position in Allstate during the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC acquired a new position in Allstate during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Hopwood Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in Allstate in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. 76.47% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on Allstate from $235.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Argus upgraded shares of Allstate from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Allstate from $187.00 to $183.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Allstate from $186.00 to $187.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Evercore ISI upgraded Allstate from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Allstate has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $217.94.

Allstate Stock Down 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE ALL traded down $2.83 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $206.46. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,113,268 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,572,643. The Allstate Co. has a 1 year low of $156.66 and a 1 year high of $212.91. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $195.81 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $193.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $54.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.36 and a quick ratio of 0.40.

Allstate (NYSE:ALL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The insurance provider reported $7.67 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.40 by $2.27. Allstate had a net margin of 7.28% and a return on equity of 28.20%. On average, equities analysts predict that The Allstate Co. will post 18.74 EPS for the current year.

Allstate Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a $1.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.94%. 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 plan on Wednesday, February 26th that allows the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the insurance provider to purchase up to 3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Jesse E. Merten sold 40,102 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 18,115 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,378,990.95. This trade represents a 68.88 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 1.80% of the company's stock.

Allstate Company Profile

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.