Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC Makes New Investment in The Allstate Co. (NYSE:ALL)

Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of The Allstate Co. (NYSE:ALL - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 25,622 shares of the insurance provider's stock, valued at approximately $4,940,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in ALL. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in Allstate by 5.2% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 577,934 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $109,605,000 after purchasing an additional 28,584 shares during the period. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of Allstate by 117.3% during the 4th quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC now owns 4,896 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $944,000 after buying an additional 2,643 shares during the last quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Allstate by 6.9% during the 4th quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. now owns 58,600 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $11,297,000 after buying an additional 3,800 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Allstate by 10.5% in the fourth quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 508,664 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $98,065,000 after acquiring an additional 48,382 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Artemis Investment Management LLP increased its stake in Allstate by 33.3% during the fourth quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP now owns 401,542 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $77,413,000 after acquiring an additional 100,311 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.47% of the company's stock.

Allstate Price Performance

ALL stock traded down $1.19 on Thursday, reaching $197.20. 2,985,058 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,625,993. The firm has a market cap of $52.28 billion, a PE ratio of 11.61, a P/E/G ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.36. The Allstate Co. has a twelve month low of $156.66 and a twelve month high of $212.91. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $198.15 and a 200-day moving average of $194.79. The company has a quick ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42.

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

Allstate Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th were issued a $1.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.03%. This is a boost from Allstate's previous quarterly dividend of $0.92. Allstate's dividend payout ratio is currently 23.54%.

Allstate announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, February 26th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the insurance provider to reacquire up to 3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Allstate from $217.00 to $222.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Allstate from $183.00 to $172.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 11th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Allstate from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, April 18th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Allstate from $186.00 to $187.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their target price on Allstate from $240.00 to $228.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Allstate currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $221.60.

Insider Buying and Selling at Allstate

In related news, CFO Jesse E. Merten sold 40,102 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 18,115 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,378,990.95. This represents a 68.88 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.80% of the stock is owned by corporate 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.