Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV Purchases 2,461 Shares of Cincinnati Financial Co. (NASDAQ:CINF)

Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV raised its holdings in shares of Cincinnati Financial Co. (NASDAQ:CINF) by 4.6% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 56,195 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,461 shares during the period. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV’s holdings in Cincinnati Financial were worth $6,637,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System boosted its position in Cincinnati Financial by 4.3% during the first quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 188,187 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $23,367,000 after buying an additional 7,709 shares during the period. UBS Group AG lifted its stake in shares of Cincinnati Financial by 15.4% in the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 349,153 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $36,123,000 after acquiring an additional 46,595 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its holdings in Cincinnati Financial by 40.6% during the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 168,351 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $20,904,000 after acquiring an additional 48,597 shares during the period. United Advisor Group LLC bought a new position in Cincinnati Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $888,000. Finally, Vest Financial LLC increased its stake in Cincinnati Financial by 14.0% in the 2nd quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 378,717 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $44,726,000 after purchasing an additional 46,530 shares during the period. 65.24% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on CINF. Citigroup raised Cincinnati Financial from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $126.00 to $135.00 in a research note on Friday, June 28th. Roth Mkm raised their price target on shares of Cincinnati Financial from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of Cincinnati Financial from $146.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of Cincinnati Financial from $151.00 to $149.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 6th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $133.57.

Cincinnati Financial Stock Performance

Cincinnati Financial stock opened at $134.63 on Friday. Cincinnati Financial Co. has a fifty-two week low of $96.86 and a fifty-two week high of $139.34. The stock has a market cap of $21.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.96, a PEG ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.66. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $130.65 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $122.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 0.27.

Cincinnati Financial (NASDAQ:CINF) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The insurance provider reported $1.29 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.96 by $0.33. The company had revenue of $2.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.21 billion. Cincinnati Financial had a return on equity of 9.10% and a net margin of 20.20%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.21 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Cincinnati Financial Co. will post 6.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cincinnati Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 17th will be given a dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 17th. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.41%. Cincinnati Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.56%.

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.