The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) has been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the eighteen brokerages that are covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $276.12.

Several research firms recently issued reports on PGR. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Progressive from $313.00 to $317.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday. StockNews.com upgraded Progressive from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Raymond James upgraded shares of Progressive from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $305.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 26th. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Progressive from $331.00 to $335.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res cut shares of Progressive from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th.

Progressive Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE PGR opened at $267.83 on Friday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $246.61 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $248.49. Progressive has a 52 week low of $186.94 and a 52 week high of $270.79. The company has a market cap of $156.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.60, a P/E/G ratio of 0.67 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The insurance provider reported $4.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.44 by $0.64. Progressive had a net margin of 11.25% and a return on equity of 33.79%. Research analysts anticipate that Progressive will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Progressive Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 9th were issued a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.15%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 10th. Progressive’s dividend payout ratio is currently 2.78%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO John P. Sauerland sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $268.09, for a total transaction of $2,680,900.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 292,958 shares in the company, valued at approximately $78,539,110.22. This represents a 3.30 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Mariann Wojtkun Marshall sold 191 shares of Progressive stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $242.10, for a total value of $46,241.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,982 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $964,042.20. This trade represents a 4.58 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 56,361 shares of company stock worth $13,983,575 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Progressive

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Kesler Norman & Wride LLC boosted its holdings in Progressive by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Kesler Norman & Wride LLC now owns 3,695 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $885,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the period. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Progressive by 20.9% during the third quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 237 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $60,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Progressive by 54.7% during the fourth quarter. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 116 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the period. LRI Investments LLC grew its holdings in shares of Progressive by 16.5% in the third quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 296 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $76,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Washington Trust Bank grew its holdings in shares of Progressive by 4.1% in the fourth quarter. Washington Trust Bank now owns 1,066 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $255,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.34% of the company’s stock.

About Progressive

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.