The Allstate Co. (NYSE:ALL) Shares Sold by Prana Capital Management LP

Prana Capital Management LP decreased its position in shares of The Allstate Co. (NYSE:ALL - Free Report) by 55.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 122,302 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 151,353 shares during the period. Allstate accounts for about 1.1% of Prana Capital Management LP's investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest position. Prana Capital Management LP's holdings in Allstate were worth $23,579,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. ProShare Advisors LLC raised its stake in Allstate by 9.7% during the 4th quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 65,794 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $12,684,000 after acquiring an additional 5,806 shares during the period. Quadcap Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Allstate during the fourth quarter valued at $440,000. Quantinno Capital Management LP increased its position in Allstate by 24.8% during the fourth quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 76,759 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $14,798,000 after acquiring an additional 15,229 shares during the last quarter. Mufg Securities Americas Inc. bought a new position in Allstate during the fourth quarter valued at $754,000. Finally, NorthRock Partners LLC increased its position in Allstate by 193.4% during the fourth quarter. NorthRock Partners LLC now owns 6,690 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $1,290,000 after acquiring an additional 4,410 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.47% of the company's stock.

Allstate Stock Up 1.9%

Shares of ALL stock traded up $3.86 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $209.13. 1,110,471 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,617,479. The stock has a market cap of $55.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.31, a P/E/G ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.32. The stock's fifty day moving average is $199.48 and its two-hundred day moving average is $195.69. The Allstate Co. has a 52-week low of $156.66 and a 52-week high of $212.91. 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 (NYSE:ALL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The insurance provider reported $3.53 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.98 by ($0.45). The firm had revenue of $14.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $16.41 billion. Allstate had a net margin of 7.28% and a return on equity of 28.20%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $5.13 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that The Allstate Co. will post 18.74 EPS for the current year.

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

Allstate Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th were given a $1.00 dividend. This is a positive change from Allstate's previous quarterly dividend of $0.92. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. Allstate's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.32%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on ALL. Raymond James restated a "strong-buy" rating and issued a $250.00 price target (up from $240.00) on shares of Allstate in a report on Monday, May 5th. Argus raised shares of Allstate from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Allstate from $217.00 to $222.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. StockNews.com raised shares of Allstate from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Allstate from $227.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Allstate currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $225.20.

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.