The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) Shares Purchased by MRA Advisory Group

MRA Advisory Group raised its position in The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) by 45.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,258 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 705 shares during the quarter. MRA Advisory Group’s holdings in Progressive were worth $573,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Sunbelt Securities Inc. grew its position in Progressive by 21.3% in the second quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 262 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $54,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Progressive by 11.8% during the 2nd quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 455 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $95,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the period. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Progressive by 10.4% during the 2nd quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 509 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $106,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the period. Graypoint LLC raised its holdings in Progressive by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. Graypoint LLC now owns 4,202 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $873,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the period. Finally, City State Bank lifted its position in Progressive by 8.2% in the second quarter. City State Bank now owns 661 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $137,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.34% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Progressive

In related news, Director Philip Bleser sold 2,129 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $219.08, for a total value of $466,421.32. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 974 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $213,383.92. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other news, Director Philip Bleser sold 2,129 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $219.08, for a total value of $466,421.32. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 974 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $213,383.92. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Dyke Kahina Van sold 2,180 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $252.28, for a total value of $549,970.40. Following the transaction, the director now owns 13,723 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,462,038.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 146,512 shares of company stock valued at $33,912,874 over the last three months. 0.34% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Progressive Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE:PGR opened at $252.27 on Friday. The Progressive Co. has a 52 week low of $138.69 and a 52 week high of $260.46. The company’s 50 day moving average is $240.90 and its two-hundred day moving average is $220.58. The company has a market cap of $147.75 billion, a PE ratio of 25.82, a P/E/G ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a current ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 16th. The insurance provider reported $2.65 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.04 by $0.61. The company had revenue of $17.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.54 billion. Progressive had a return on equity of 33.01% and a net margin of 10.17%. Progressive’s quarterly revenue was up 21.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.57 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that The Progressive Co. will post 13.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Progressive Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.16%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 3rd. Progressive’s payout ratio is 4.09%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Progressive from $281.00 to $282.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Progressive from $260.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Progressive from $210.00 to $239.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. HSBC raised Progressive from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $253.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Finally, Barclays started coverage on Progressive in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $367.00 target price on the stock. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Progressive currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $257.18.

Progressive Profile

The Progressive Corporation, an insurance holding company, provides personal and commercial auto, personal residential and commercial property, business related general liability, and other specialty property-casualty insurance products and related services in the United States. It operates in three segments: Personal Lines, Commercial Lines, and Property.