Short Interest in Cincinnati Financial Co. (NASDAQ:CINF) Grows By 18.0%

Cincinnati Financial Co. (NASDAQ:CINF) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest during the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 2,560,000 shares, a growth of 18.0% from the February 13th total of 2,170,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 724,900 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.5 days. Currently, 1.7% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cincinnati Financial

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. increased its stake in shares of Cincinnati Financial by 2.1% during the third quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 3,378 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $460,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares during the period. Simon Quick Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Cincinnati Financial by 5.0% during the fourth quarter. Simon Quick Advisors LLC now owns 1,562 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $224,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares during the period. Wealth Dimensions Group Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Cincinnati Financial by 0.9% during the third quarter. Wealth Dimensions Group Ltd. now owns 8,069 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,098,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the period. Park Avenue Securities LLC increased its stake in shares of Cincinnati Financial by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 17,473 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,511,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares during the period. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC increased its stake in shares of Cincinnati Financial by 1.4% during the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 5,819 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $792,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 65.24% of the company’s stock.

Cincinnati Financial Stock Performance

CINF opened at $146.22 on Friday. Cincinnati Financial has a 12-month low of $109.93 and a 12-month high of $161.75. The stock has a market cap of $22.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.07, a PEG ratio of 8.30 and a beta of 0.66. The business has a 50 day moving average of $139.76 and a 200-day moving average of $142.31. 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 released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 10th. The insurance provider reported $3.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.90 by $1.24. Cincinnati Financial had a return on equity of 9.01% and a net margin of 20.22%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Cincinnati Financial will post 5.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Cincinnati Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 24th will be paid a dividend of $0.87 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 24th. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.38%. This is a positive change from Cincinnati Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. Cincinnati Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 23.97%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently commented on the company. Roth Mkm increased their price target on 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 increased their price target on Cincinnati Financial from $180.00 to $182.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Cincinnati Financial presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $151.00.

About Cincinnati Financial

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.