Zacks Research Upgrades Allstate (NYSE:ALL) to Strong-Buy

Allstate (NYSE:ALL) was upgraded by stock analysts at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report released on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $280.00 price objective on shares of Allstate in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on Allstate from $242.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Morgan Stanley set a $265.00 price target on Allstate in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. HSBC lowered shares of Allstate from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and increased their price target for the company from $244.00 to $264.00 in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Finally, Evercore set a $240.00 price objective on shares of Allstate in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Allstate currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $265.53.

Allstate Stock Up 1.2%

Shares of ALL opened at $261.27 on Monday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $248.26 and its 200-day simple moving average is $223.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.36. Allstate has a 1 year low of $188.08 and a 1 year high of $277.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $66.06 billion, a PE ratio of 5.22, a P/E/G ratio of 0.41 and a beta of 0.16.

Allstate (NYSE:ALL) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The insurance provider reported $8.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.06 by $2.93. The firm had revenue of $15.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.46 billion. Allstate had a return on equity of 41.64% and a net margin of 18.97%.Allstate’s revenue was up 11.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $5.94 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Allstate will post 34.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Mark Q. Prindiville sold 1,550 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $216.27, for a total value of $335,218.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 27,558 shares in the company, valued at $5,959,968.66. This trade represents a 5.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, COO Mario Rizzo sold 56,225 shares of Allstate stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $264.48, for a total transaction of $14,870,388.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 82,227 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,747,396.96. The trade was a 40.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 92,996 shares of company stock valued at $24,543,894. Company insiders own 1.55% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Allstate

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its stake in shares of Allstate by 60.2% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,500 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,253,000 after acquiring an additional 2,443 shares during the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in Allstate in the 4th quarter valued at about $231,000. WINTON GROUP Ltd acquired a new position in Allstate in the 2nd quarter valued at about $210,000. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina lifted its holdings in Allstate by 2.5% in the 2nd quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 123,272 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $24,816,000 after purchasing an additional 3,051 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ieq Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Allstate by 20.1% in the 2nd quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 38,316 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $7,713,000 after purchasing an additional 6,412 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.47% of the company’s stock.

Allstate Company Profile

Allstate Corporation is a publicly traded insurance company headquartered in Northbrook, Illinois, and is one of the largest personal lines property and casualty insurers in the United States. Founded in 1931 as a subsidiary of Sears, Roebuck and Co, Allstate has grown into a diversified insurer that serves millions of consumers and businesses through a mix of distribution channels and product offerings.

The company underwrites a broad range of insurance products, with primary emphasis on auto and homeowners coverage.