Essential Planning LLC. Invests $6.36 Million in The Allstate Co. (NYSE:ALL)

Essential Planning LLC. bought a new stake in shares of The Allstate Co. (NYSE:ALL) during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm bought 32,760 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $6,357,000.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Allstate during the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Allstate during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Allstate during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Peoples Bank KS purchased a new stake in shares of Allstate during the 4th quarter valued at about $49,000. Finally, Stonebridge Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Allstate during the 4th quarter valued at about $53,000. 76.47% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Allstate Stock Performance

NYSE:ALL opened at $202.25 on Wednesday. The Allstate Co. has a 12-month low of $156.66 and a 12-month high of $209.88. The company has a quick ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The firm has a market capitalization of $53.60 billion, a PE ratio of 11.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.47. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $191.08 and a 200 day moving average price of $192.10.

Allstate (NYSE:ALL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The insurance provider reported $7.67 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.40 by $2.27. Allstate had a net margin of 7.28% and a return on equity of 28.20%. Research analysts anticipate that The Allstate Co. will post 18.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Allstate Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a dividend of $1.00 per share. This is a boost from Allstate’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.92. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.98%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. Allstate’s dividend payout ratio is 23.54%.

Allstate announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback program 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 stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have issued reports on ALL. Barclays dropped their price objective on Allstate from $187.00 to $183.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on Allstate from $235.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on Allstate from $206.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Argus upgraded Allstate from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Allstate from $186.00 to $187.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $217.94.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Jesse E. Merten sold 40,102 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 18,115 shares in the company, valued at $3,378,990.95. This represents a 68.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 1.80% of the stock is owned by 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.