The Allstate Co. (NYSE:ALL) Receives Average Rating of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts

Shares of The Allstate Co. (NYSE:ALL - Get Free Report) have received a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the sixteen brokerages that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, one has given a hold recommendation, thirteen have issued a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $225.20.

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of Allstate from $228.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Allstate from $225.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Allstate from $183.00 to $172.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 11th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Allstate from $200.00 to $197.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of Allstate from $227.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ALL. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new stake in Allstate during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Hughes Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in Allstate during the 1st quarter valued at $28,000. Twin Tree Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Allstate in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Allstate in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Hopwood Financial Services Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Allstate in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. 76.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Allstate Stock Up 1.9%

Allstate stock traded up $3.86 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $209.13. 1,110,471 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,614,962. The company has a market cap of $55.38 billion, a PE ratio of 12.31, a P/E/G ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.32. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $199.48 and a two-hundred day moving average of $195.65. Allstate has a 12 month low of $156.66 and a 12 month high of $212.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a current ratio of 0.36.

Allstate (NYSE:ALL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The insurance provider reported $3.53 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 period in the previous year, the business earned $5.13 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that Allstate will post 18.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

Allstate Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th were paid a $1.00 dividend. This is a boost from Allstate's previous quarterly dividend of $0.92. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.91%. Allstate's dividend payout ratio is presently 27.32%.

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.