The insurance giant said it would cut nearly 3,800 jobs, or nearly 8% of its workforce
The shares of Allstate Corp (NYSE:ALL) are down 1.8% at $92.42 this morning, after the insurance company announced it would cut roughly 3,800 jobs, or nearly 8% of its workforce, across its claims, sales, service and support functions as part of a multi-year restructuring plan. As a result of the layoffs, Allstate will incur a $290 million charge. The news sparked a reaction from the brokerage bunch. UBS cut its price target to $111 from $115, while BofA Global Research lifted its price objective to $135 from $132.
On the charts, the security has been trading sideways for the past several months. And while shares have somewhat improved from a four-year-low near the $64 level back in March, ALL has some ways to go before it can reclaim its Feb. 18 all-time-high of $125.80. More recently, ALL has been struggling with overhead pressure at the 140-day moving average, and is down 17.8% year-to-date.
Coming into today, analysts were still optimistic towards Allstate stock, with eight of the 13 in coverage sporting a "buy" or better rating, and the remaining five carrying a tepid "hold." Meanwhile, the equity's 12-month consensus target price of $118.15 is a whopping 25.6% premium to current levels, meaning even more price-target cuts or downgrades could be on the horizon for ALL.
That upbeat analyst sentiment is reflected in the options pits, where calls are popular. The stock sports a 10-day call/put volume ratio of 3.36 at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) that sits in the 90th percentile of its annual range. This suggests a healthier-than-usual appetite for bullish bets of late.
Lastly, investors looking to get in on Allstate stock's next move may want to consider options. The security's Schaeffer's Volatility Index (SVI) of 27% sits in the 13th percentile of its annual range. In other words, option traders are pricing in low volatility expectations at the moment.