Norges Bank Invests $223.96 Million in Cincinnati Financial Co. (NASDAQ:CINF)

Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Cincinnati Financial Co. (NASDAQ:CINF) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor purchased 1,558,520 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $223,959,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec increased its holdings in Cincinnati Financial by 583.2% in the 3rd quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 385,918 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $52,531,000 after purchasing an additional 329,435 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Cincinnati Financial by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 6,006,254 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $863,099,000 after buying an additional 224,033 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Cincinnati Financial by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,167,705 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $2,754,399,000 after buying an additional 173,417 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in Cincinnati Financial by 49.5% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 445,337 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $60,619,000 after buying an additional 147,542 shares during the period. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC grew its holdings in Cincinnati Financial by 3,381.8% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 140,768 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $20,228,000 after acquiring an additional 136,725 shares during the last quarter. 65.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Cincinnati Financial Trading Down 1.3 %

NASDAQ:CINF opened at $145.55 on Monday. Cincinnati Financial Co. has a 52 week low of $109.93 and a 52 week high of $161.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a current ratio of 0.29. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $140.57 and its 200-day moving average is $142.79. The firm has a market cap of $22.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.02, a P/E/G ratio of 8.30 and a beta of 0.66.

Cincinnati Financial (NASDAQ:CINF) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The insurance provider reported $3.14 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.90 by $1.24. Cincinnati Financial had a net margin of 20.22% and a return on equity of 9.01%. Equities analysts expect that Cincinnati Financial Co. will post 5.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Cincinnati Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 24th will be issued a $0.87 dividend. This is an increase from Cincinnati Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.39%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 24th. Cincinnati Financial’s payout ratio is presently 23.97%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CINF has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of Cincinnati Financial from $180.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Roth Mkm lifted their target price on Cincinnati Financial from $140.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $154.20.

Cincinnati Financial 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.