Candriam S.C.A. Has $1.90 Million Stock Holdings in Cincinnati Financial Co. (NASDAQ:CINF)

Candriam S.C.A. increased its stake in shares of Cincinnati Financial Co. (NASDAQ:CINF) by 72.7% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 13,212 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after buying an additional 5,560 shares during the quarter. Candriam S.C.A.’s holdings in Cincinnati Financial were worth $1,899,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Cincinnati Financial by 3.9% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 6,006,254 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $863,099,000 after purchasing an additional 224,033 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in Cincinnati Financial by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,030,017 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $148,013,000 after purchasing an additional 27,301 shares in the last quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp increased its position in Cincinnati Financial by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 795,780 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $114,354,000 after purchasing an additional 18,192 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC increased its position in Cincinnati Financial by 13.1% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 534,361 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $72,736,000 after purchasing an additional 61,801 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in Cincinnati Financial by 49.5% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 445,337 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $60,619,000 after acquiring an additional 147,542 shares during the period. 65.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Cincinnati Financial Stock Down 0.6 %

Shares of NASDAQ CINF opened at $139.96 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $21.91 billion, a PE ratio of 9.64, a P/E/G ratio of 8.30 and a beta of 0.66. Cincinnati Financial Co. has a 12-month low of $109.93 and a 12-month high of $161.74. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $139.55 and its 200 day simple moving average is $141.82. The company has a quick ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06.

Cincinnati Financial (NASDAQ:CINF) last issued its earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The insurance provider reported $3.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.90 by $1.24. Cincinnati Financial had a net margin of 20.22% and a return on equity of 9.01%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Cincinnati Financial Co. will post 5.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cincinnati Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 24th will be issued a dividend of $0.87 per share. This is an increase from Cincinnati Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 24th. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.49%. Cincinnati Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 23.97%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have issued reports on CINF. Roth Mkm upped their price target on shares of Cincinnati Financial from $140.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Cincinnati Financial from $180.00 to $182.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Cincinnati Financial currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $151.00.

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.