Johnson Financial Group Inc. Purchases 4,879 Shares of The Allstate Co. (NYSE:ALL)

Johnson Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of The Allstate Co. (NYSE:ALL - Free Report) by 66.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 12,171 shares of the insurance provider's stock after acquiring an additional 4,879 shares during the period. Johnson Financial Group Inc.'s holdings in Allstate were worth $2,341,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in Allstate during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Twin Tree Management LP purchased a new stake in Allstate during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC acquired a new position in Allstate during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Allstate in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Allstate during the 4th quarter worth $40,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.47% of the company's stock.

Allstate Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ALL traded down $2.46 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $195.94. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,481,078 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,929,886. The company has a current ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $198.15 and a 200 day moving average price of $194.79. The Allstate Co. has a one year low of $156.66 and a one year high of $212.91. The company has a market cap of $51.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.36.

Allstate (NYSE:ALL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results 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 business had revenue of $14.30 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.41 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $5.13 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that The Allstate Co. will post 18.74 EPS for the current year.

Allstate Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th were issued a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.04%. This is a positive change from Allstate's previous quarterly dividend of $0.92. Allstate's payout ratio is currently 23.54%.

Allstate announced that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Wednesday, February 26th that allows the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the insurance provider to purchase up to 3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Evercore ISI upped their price target on Allstate from $227.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on Allstate from $240.00 to $228.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Argus upgraded Allstate from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Allstate from $217.00 to $222.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Allstate from $186.00 to $187.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $221.60.

Insider Activity at Allstate

In other Allstate news, CFO Jesse E. Merten sold 40,102 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 18,115 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,378,990.95. The trade was a 68.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.