Bank of Montreal Can Sells 44,052 Shares of Cincinnati Financial Co. (NASDAQ:CINF)

Bank of Montreal Can lowered its holdings in Cincinnati Financial Co. (NASDAQ:CINF - Free Report) by 23.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 144,383 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 44,052 shares during the quarter. Bank of Montreal Can owned about 0.09% of Cincinnati Financial worth $20,748,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in CINF. Cerity Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Cincinnati Financial by 11.1% in the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 35,327 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $5,039,000 after acquiring an additional 3,539 shares during the last quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd acquired a new position in Cincinnati Financial during the 4th quarter worth $275,000. Waterloo Capital L.P. boosted its position in Cincinnati Financial by 4.9% in the 4th quarter. Waterloo Capital L.P. now owns 11,029 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $1,585,000 after buying an additional 511 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Cincinnati Financial by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 135,012 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $19,401,000 after acquiring an additional 1,037 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Aviva PLC lifted its stake in shares of Cincinnati Financial by 68.0% during the fourth quarter. Aviva PLC now owns 9,731 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $1,398,000 after acquiring an additional 3,938 shares during the period. 65.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Roth Mkm raised their target price on shares of Cincinnati Financial from $140.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Cincinnati Financial from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on Cincinnati Financial from $182.00 to $148.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Cincinnati Financial has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $147.40.

Cincinnati Financial Stock Up 0.7 %

CINF traded up $0.92 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $133.03. 136,954 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 671,265. The stock's 50-day moving average is $139.76 and its two-hundred day moving average is $142.60. 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 Co. has a 1-year low of $109.93 and a 1-year high of $161.75. The stock has a market cap of $20.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.16, a PEG ratio of 8.30 and a beta of 0.53.

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

Cincinnati Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Monday, March 24th were paid a $0.87 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 24th. This is an increase from Cincinnati Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.62%. Cincinnati Financial's payout ratio is 23.97%.

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.