Royal London Asset Management Ltd. Sells 1,389 Shares of The Allstate Co. (NYSE:ALL)

Royal London Asset Management Ltd. reduced its stake in shares of The Allstate Co. (NYSE:ALL) by 1.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 112,059 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 1,389 shares during the period. Royal London Asset Management Ltd.’s holdings in Allstate were worth $21,604,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of ALL. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new position in Allstate during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Allstate in the 3rd quarter worth about $26,000. Twin Tree Management LP bought a new position in shares of Allstate in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC bought a new position in shares of Allstate in the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Hopwood Financial Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Allstate in the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. 76.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Allstate

In related news, CFO Jesse E. Merten sold 40,102 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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. This represents a 68.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 1.80% of the company’s stock.

Allstate Price Performance

ALL stock opened at $206.60 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $54.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a current ratio of 0.36. The Allstate Co. has a 52-week low of $156.66 and a 52-week high of $212.91. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $193.75 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $193.07.

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

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

Allstate Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This is an increase from Allstate’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.92. Allstate’s payout ratio is presently 23.54%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Argus raised Allstate from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Evercore ISI raised Allstate from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Barclays lowered their price objective on Allstate from $187.00 to $183.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on Allstate from $235.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their target price on Allstate from $206.00 to $244.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $217.94.

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.