Bank of Montreal Can Sells 154,431 Shares of The Allstate Co. (NYSE:ALL)

Bank of Montreal Can decreased its holdings in shares of The Allstate Co. (NYSE:ALL) by 22.6% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 529,143 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 154,431 shares during the quarter. Bank of Montreal Can’s holdings in Allstate were worth $102,013,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ALL. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new position in shares of Allstate during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Twin Tree Management LP bought a new position in shares of Allstate during the fourth 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. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Allstate in the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Allstate during the 4th quarter worth about $40,000. 76.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Allstate Stock Up 1.5 %

Shares of NYSE ALL opened at $183.16 on Wednesday. The Allstate Co. has a 1 year low of $156.66 and a 1 year high of $212.91. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $196.80 and its 200-day moving average is $194.17. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $48.54 billion, a PE ratio of 10.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.36.

Allstate (NYSE:ALL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The insurance provider reported $7.67 earnings per share (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%. Equities analysts expect that The Allstate Co. will post 18.74 EPS for the current year.

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 issued a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.18%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. This is an increase 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 stock buyback plan on Wednesday, February 26th that permits the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the insurance provider to reacquire up to 3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ALL has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Evercore ISI raised shares of Allstate from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Barclays decreased their price target on Allstate from $187.00 to $183.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. StockNews.com raised Allstate from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on Allstate from $235.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Allstate from $217.00 to $222.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $220.80.

Insider Buying and Selling at Allstate

In other news, CFO Jesse E. Merten sold 40,102 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $186.53, for a total value of $7,480,226.06. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 18,115 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,378,990.95. This represents a 68.88 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.80% of the company’s stock.

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.