Westpac Banking Corp Sells 3,502 Shares of Cincinnati Financial Co. (NASDAQ:CINF)

Westpac Banking Corp cut its holdings in shares of Cincinnati Financial Co. (NASDAQ:CINF - Free Report) by 74.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,225 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 3,502 shares during the quarter. Westpac Banking Corp's holdings in Cincinnati Financial were worth $176,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Cincinnati Financial by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,167,705 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $2,754,399,000 after buying an additional 173,417 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Cincinnati Financial by 3.9% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 6,006,254 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $863,099,000 after acquiring an additional 224,033 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Cincinnati Financial by 5.0% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,930,022 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $563,323,000 after buying an additional 185,705 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Cincinnati Financial in the fourth quarter worth about $223,959,000. Finally, Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. boosted its stake in Cincinnati Financial by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 1,332,689 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $191,507,000 after buying an additional 8,736 shares in the last quarter. 65.24% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Cincinnati Financial Trading Down 2.1 %

NASDAQ CINF traded down $2.86 on Thursday, reaching $131.77. The company had a trading volume of 227,918 shares, compared to its average volume of 670,952. The stock has a market cap of $20.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.05, a PEG ratio of 8.30 and a beta of 0.53. Cincinnati Financial Co. has a 52 week low of $109.93 and a 52 week high of $161.75. The stock's 50 day moving average is $140.22 and its 200-day moving average is $142.76. The company has a quick ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06.

Cincinnati Financial (NASDAQ:CINF - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 10th. The insurance provider reported $3.14 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%. Equities analysts predict that Cincinnati Financial Co. will post 5.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Cincinnati Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Monday, March 24th will be paid a $0.87 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 24th. This is a positive change from Cincinnati Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.64%. Cincinnati Financial's dividend payout ratio is presently 23.97%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on CINF. Roth Mkm lifted their price objective on Cincinnati Financial from $140.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on Cincinnati Financial from $182.00 to $148.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Finally, StockNews.com cut Cincinnati Financial from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $147.40.

Cincinnati Financial Profile

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.