Allstate (NYSE:ALL) Sets New 1-Year High on Earnings Beat

The Allstate Co. (NYSE:ALL - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high on Thursday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock traded as high as $177.37 and last traded at $172.88, with a volume of 354377 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $171.56.

The insurance provider reported $5.13 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.11 by $1.02. Allstate had a negative net margin of 0.33% and a positive return on equity of 2.67%. The company had revenue of $15.26 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.76 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted ($1.30) EPS. The firm's revenue was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year.

Allstate Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 4th were given a dividend of $0.92 per share. This is an increase from Allstate's previous quarterly dividend of $0.89. This represents a $3.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.18%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 1st. Allstate's payout ratio is presently -296.77%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have issued reports on ALL shares. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of Allstate from $166.00 to $173.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Allstate from $164.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, March 25th. Roth Mkm boosted their price objective on shares of Allstate from $175.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, April 8th. TheStreet raised shares of Allstate from a "c+" rating to a "b" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 7th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Allstate from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $130.00 to $180.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $174.18.

Insider Activity at Allstate

In related news, CAO John C. Pintozzi sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.47, for a total transaction of $637,880.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 10,736 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,712,069.92. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Allstate news, insider John E. Dugenske sold 31,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.20, for a total transaction of $5,276,200.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 63,731 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,847,016.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO John C. Pintozzi sold 4,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.47, for a total transaction of $637,880.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 10,736 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,712,069.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Allstate

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ALL. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Allstate by 11.5% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 32,270,589 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $3,595,266,000 after acquiring an additional 3,322,673 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Allstate in the 4th quarter worth approximately $212,771,000. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Allstate by 46.6% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,121,941 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $459,225,000 after purchasing an additional 1,311,095 shares during the period. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Allstate by 23.0% in the 3rd quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,184,211 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $466,163,000 after purchasing an additional 782,696 shares during the period. Finally, Palestra Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Allstate in the 4th quarter worth approximately $83,561,000. Institutional investors own 76.47% of the company's stock.

Allstate Stock Down 1.4 %

The company's 50 day moving average price is $165.88 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $150.65. The company has a current ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The stock has a market cap of $44.51 billion, a P/E ratio of -136.44, a PEG ratio of 0.41 and a beta of 0.51.

About Allstate

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.