HM Payson & Co. Sells 1,529 Shares of The Allstate Co. (NYSE:ALL)

HM Payson & Co. trimmed its stake in The Allstate Co. (NYSE:ALL) by 15.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,227 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 1,529 shares during the quarter. HM Payson & Co.’s holdings in Allstate were worth $1,586,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Allstate in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC acquired a new position in shares of Allstate during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Peoples Bank KS acquired a new position in shares of Allstate during the 4th quarter worth approximately $49,000. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Allstate during the 4th quarter worth approximately $53,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Allstate during the 4th quarter worth about $57,000. 76.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently commented on ALL. Argus raised shares of Allstate from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Evercore ISI raised shares of Allstate from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of Allstate from $209.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Allstate from $186.00 to $187.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on shares of Allstate from $235.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $217.94.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Jesse E. Merten sold 40,102 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.80% of the company’s stock.

Allstate Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ALL opened at $200.87 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $190.76 and a 200-day moving average of $191.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $53.24 billion, a PE ratio of 11.82, a PEG ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.47. 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 Allstate Co. has a 12 month low of $155.59 and a 12 month high of $209.88.

Allstate (NYSE:ALL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The insurance provider reported $7.67 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.40 by $2.27. Allstate had a net margin of 7.28% and a return on equity of 28.20%. On average, equities research analysts predict that The Allstate Co. will post 18.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Allstate Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a $1.00 dividend. This is a positive change from Allstate’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.92. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.99%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. Allstate’s dividend payout ratio is currently 23.54%.

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

Allstate 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.