Cincinnati Financial (NASDAQ:CINF) Lifted to Outperform at BMO Capital Markets

BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Cincinnati Financial (NASDAQ:CINF) from a market perform rating to an outperform rating in a research report report published on Monday morning, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The brokerage currently has $135.00 target price on the insurance provider’s stock, up from their prior target price of $125.00.

CINF has been the subject of a number of other reports. TheStreet raised Cincinnati Financial from a c+ rating to a b rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Janney Montgomery Scott began coverage on Cincinnati Financial in a research note on Thursday, December 14th. They set a neutral rating and a $110.00 target price for the company. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Cincinnati Financial presently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $116.71.

Cincinnati Financial Stock Up 2.5 %

Cincinnati Financial stock opened at $123.29 on Monday. Cincinnati Financial has a twelve month low of $95.01 and a twelve month high of $123.36. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $113.54 and a two-hundred day moving average of $106.72. The company has a current ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.56, a PEG ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 0.62.

Cincinnati Financial (NASDAQ:CINF) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 7th. The insurance provider reported $2.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.95 by $0.33. Cincinnati Financial had a return on equity of 8.56% and a net margin of 18.41%. The company had revenue of $3.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.02 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.27 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Cincinnati Financial will post 6.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Cincinnati Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 19th will be paid a $0.81 dividend. This is an increase from Cincinnati Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 18th. Cincinnati Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.76%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cincinnati Financial

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of CINF. American Century Companies Inc. increased its position in Cincinnati Financial by 14.4% during the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 12,234 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,663,000 after buying an additional 1,536 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. purchased a new position in Cincinnati Financial during the first quarter worth $779,000. Cibc World Market Inc. purchased a new position in Cincinnati Financial during the first quarter worth $713,000. Blair William & Co. IL increased its position in Cincinnati Financial by 12.1% during the first quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 3,319 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $451,000 after buying an additional 357 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Aviva PLC increased its position in Cincinnati Financial by 56.5% during the first quarter. Aviva PLC now owns 92,169 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $12,531,000 after buying an additional 33,270 shares in the last quarter. 65.24% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Cincinnati Financial Company Profile

Cincinnati Financial Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides property casualty insurance products in the United States. It operates through five segments: Commercial Lines Insurance, Personal Lines Insurance, Excess and Surplus Lines Insurance, Life Insurance, and Investments. The Commercial Lines Insurance segment offers coverage for commercial casualty, commercial property, commercial auto, and workers' compensation.