Allstate (NYSE:ALL) Upgraded to “Strong-Buy” by StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Allstate (NYSE:ALL) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a report issued on Thursday morning.

Several other research firms also recently weighed in on ALL. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Allstate from $213.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Thursday. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Allstate from $197.00 to $199.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Roth Mkm boosted their price target on shares of Allstate from $175.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Allstate from $205.00 to $200.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised shares of Allstate from a market perform rating to an outperform rating and upped their target price for the stock from $190.00 to $191.00 in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Allstate currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $183.24.

Allstate Price Performance

ALL stock opened at $176.82 on Thursday. Allstate has a 52-week low of $104.29 and a 52-week high of $180.87. The business has a fifty day moving average of $164.68 and a two-hundred day moving average of $164.34. The stock has a market cap of $46.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a quick ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49.

Allstate (NYSE:ALL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The insurance provider reported $1.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.33 by $1.28. The firm had revenue of $15.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.04 billion. Allstate had a net margin of 5.03% and a return on equity of 24.05%. Allstate’s revenue was up 12.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned ($4.42) EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Allstate will post 13.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Allstate Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Friday, August 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.92 per share. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.08%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 30th. Allstate’s payout ratio is 81.24%.

Insider Activity at Allstate

In other Allstate news, insider Suren Gupta sold 45,775 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $177.28, for a total transaction of $8,114,992.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 89,930 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,942,790.40. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Allstate

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Allstate in the first quarter valued at about $25,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new position in Allstate in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Allstate during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new stake in Allstate during the 1st quarter worth approximately $26,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in shares of Allstate by 70.9% in the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 188 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.47% of the company’s stock.

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.