Allstate (NYSE:ALL) Now Covered by Analysts at William Blair

William Blair initiated coverage on shares of Allstate (NYSE:ALL - Free Report) in a report issued on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm issued a sector outperform rating on the insurance provider's stock.

ALL has been the subject of several other reports. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Allstate from $200.00 to $197.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Raymond James reiterated a "strong-buy" rating and issued a $250.00 price objective (up previously from $240.00) on shares of Allstate in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Allstate from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. BMO Capital Markets restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Allstate in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Allstate from $183.00 to $172.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $225.20.

Allstate Trading Up 0.7%

ALL stock traded up $1.45 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $208.10. The stock had a trading volume of 1,173,995 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,607,516. The firm has a market cap of $55.11 billion, a PE ratio of 12.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.32. 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 has a 12-month low of $156.66 and a 12-month high of $213.18. The company's 50-day moving average price is $199.58 and its 200 day moving average price is $197.09.

Allstate (NYSE:ALL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The insurance provider reported $3.53 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $3.98 by ($0.45). Allstate had a return on equity of 28.20% and a net margin of 7.28%. The firm had revenue of $14.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.41 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $5.13 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Allstate will post 18.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Allstate declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, February 26th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the insurance provider to buy up to 3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Allstate Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 9th will be issued a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 9th. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.92%. Allstate's dividend payout ratio is currently 27.32%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Allstate

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. First Hawaiian Bank bought a new position in Allstate in the first quarter worth approximately $476,000. Invst LLC purchased a new stake in Allstate in the first quarter valued at $1,202,000. Strs Ohio purchased a new stake in Allstate in the first quarter valued at $84,408,000. Intrua Financial LLC boosted its holdings in Allstate by 5.3% in the first quarter. Intrua Financial LLC now owns 1,436 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $297,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Advisors Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Allstate during the 1st quarter worth about $301,000. 76.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.