The Dividend Daily

Insurance company, The Allstate Corporation(ALL) reported a drop in earnings for the fourth quarter due to expenses from Hurricane Sandy claims.

The Northbrook, IL based company reported fourth quarter earnings of $394 million, or 81 cents per share, down -45% from $712 million, or $1.40 per share last year. Excluding special items, earnings were $289 million, or 59 cents per share, from $735 million, or $1.45 last year.

Operating income was 59 cents per share. Analysts had estimated the company to see a loss of 5 cents per share, expecting the company to take more of a hit from Hurricane Sandy claims.

Allstate said that they received 170,000 claims from Sandy, costing the company $1.12 billion.

Although the company saw a significant drop in earningsduring the quarter, they have increased their dividend from 22 cents to 25 quarterly. This dividend will be payable on April 1 to shareholders of record on February 28.

Allstate also reported that they will be buying back $1 billion worth of shares

Allstate shares were up $2.19, or 4.94% during premarket trading Thursday. The stock has increased 44% in the past year.

The Bottom Line
Shares of The Allstate Corporation(ALL) will now have a 2.26% yield, based on the higher dividend payout and Wednesday’s closing price of $44.31.

The Allstate Corporation(ALL) is not recommended at this time, holding a Dividend.com DARS™ Rating of 3.4 out of 5 stars.

Be sure to visit our complete recommended list of the Best Dividend Stocks, as well as a detailed explanation of our ratings system here.