Empirical Finance LLC Boosts Position in Cincinnati Financial Co. (NASDAQ:CINF)

Empirical Finance LLC raised its stake in shares of Cincinnati Financial Co. (NASDAQ:CINF – Get Rating) by 21.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,281 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after buying an additional 398 shares during the quarter. Empirical Finance LLC’s holdings in Cincinnati Financial were worth $260,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wagner Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Cincinnati Financial by 43.8% during the 3rd quarter. Wagner Wealth Management LLC now owns 279 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Cincinnati Financial by 32.9% during the third quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC now owns 396 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC purchased a new position in shares of Cincinnati Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $46,000. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Cincinnati Financial by 340.2% during the fourth quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 427 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 330 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Paragon Capital Management Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Cincinnati Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $51,000. 65.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Shares of CINF stock opened at $138.59 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a current ratio of 0.29. Cincinnati Financial Co. has a fifty-two week low of $105.64 and a fifty-two week high of $139.82. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $129.17 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $122.01. The company has a market capitalization of $22.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.65 and a beta of 0.63.

Cincinnati Financial (NASDAQ:CINF – Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 15th. The insurance provider reported $1.97 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the Thomson Reuters’ consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.47. Cincinnati Financial had a return on equity of 8.70% and a net margin of 30.59%. The firm had revenue of $3.32 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.77 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.61 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 23.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Cincinnati Financial Co. will post 5.55 earnings per share for the current year.

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 15th. Investors of record on Friday, March 18th were issued a dividend of $0.69 per share. This represents a $2.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.99%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 17th. This is an increase from Cincinnati Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.63. Cincinnati Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 15.24%.

CINF has been the subject of several research reports. Zacks Investment Research raised Cincinnati Financial from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $145.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, February 18th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on Cincinnati Financial in a research note on Thursday, March 31st. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Cincinnati Financial currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $129.80.

About Cincinnati Financial (Get Rating)

Cincinnati Financial Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides property casualty insurance products in the United States. The company 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.

See Also