Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Purchases 67,032 Shares of The Allstate Co. (NYSE:ALL)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its position in shares of The Allstate Co. (NYSE:ALL) by 56.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 186,792 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 67,032 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in Allstate were worth $36,012,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of ALL. FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Allstate during the third quarter valued at $26,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC bought a new position in Allstate during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Peoples Bank KS bought a new position in Allstate during the fourth quarter valued at $49,000. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Allstate during the fourth quarter valued at $53,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Allstate during the fourth quarter valued at $57,000. 76.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Allstate Trading Down 0.9 %

NYSE ALL opened at $199.00 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $190.89 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $191.95. The Allstate Co. has a twelve month low of $156.45 and a twelve 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 company has a market capitalization of $52.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.71, a PEG ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.47.

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

Allstate Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a $1.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.01%. This is an increase from Allstate’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.92. Allstate’s payout ratio is currently 23.54%.

Allstate declared that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Wednesday, February 26th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the insurance provider to buy up to 3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ALL has been the subject of several research reports. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on Allstate from $206.00 to $244.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Barclays cut their price target on Allstate from $187.00 to $183.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Argus raised Allstate from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on Allstate from $209.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Allstate from $186.00 to $187.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $217.94.

Insider Transactions at Allstate

In other news, CFO Jesse E. Merten sold 40,102 shares of Allstate 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 18,115 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,378,990.95. The trade was a 68.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company 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.