Nemes Rush Group LLC Acquires 4,155 Shares of The Allstate Co. (NYSE:ALL)

Nemes Rush Group LLC grew its holdings in The Allstate Co. (NYSE:ALL) by 7.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 57,317 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,155 shares during the period. Allstate comprises about 1.4% of Nemes Rush Group LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest holding. Nemes Rush Group LLC’s holdings in Allstate were worth $11,050,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of ALL. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Allstate during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Allstate during the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Twin Tree Management LP bought a new position in shares of Allstate during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC bought a new stake in shares of Allstate in the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Hopwood Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in Allstate during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.47% of the company’s stock.

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 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 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.80% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on ALL shares. Argus raised shares of Allstate from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Allstate from $186.00 to $187.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Evercore ISI raised Allstate from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Allstate from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of Allstate from $235.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $219.80.

Allstate Stock Performance

Allstate stock opened at $207.14 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $54.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.47. The company’s 50-day moving average is $196.18 and its 200 day moving average is $194.06. The Allstate Co. has a 1-year low of $156.66 and a 1-year high of $212.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.36 and a quick ratio of 0.40.

Allstate (NYSE:ALL) last issued its earnings results 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 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 year.

Allstate announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Wednesday, February 26th that permits the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the insurance provider to reacquire up to 3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

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 paid a dividend of $1.00 per share. This is an increase from Allstate’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.92. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.93%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. Allstate’s payout ratio is presently 23.54%.

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.