Jefferies Financial Group Raises Progressive (NYSE:PGR) Price Target to $295.00

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) had its target price boosted by investment analysts at Jefferies Financial Group from $257.00 to $295.00 in a research note issued on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the insurance provider’s stock. Jefferies Financial Group’s target price would suggest a potential upside of 17.08% from the stock’s current price.

Several other research firms have also recently commented on PGR. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Progressive from $262.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. HSBC upgraded shares of Progressive from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $253.00 target price for the company in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Progressive from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Progressive from $281.00 to $282.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on shares of Progressive from $239.00 to $237.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Progressive currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $259.41.

Progressive Stock Performance

NYSE:PGR traded up $2.94 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $251.96. 659,832 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,492,128. The firm has a market capitalization of $147.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.79, a P/E/G ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a 50-day moving average of $242.99 and a 200 day moving average of $221.73. The company has a quick ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. Progressive has a 1-year low of $141.84 and a 1-year high of $260.46.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 16th. The insurance provider reported $2.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.04 by $0.61. The firm had revenue of $17.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.54 billion. Progressive had a net margin of 10.17% and a return on equity of 33.01%. Progressive’s quarterly revenue was up 21.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.57 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Progressive will post 13.01 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Progressive

In other news, insider Andrew J. Quigg sold 3,975 shares of Progressive stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $214.01, for a total transaction of $850,689.75. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 32,780 shares in the company, valued at $7,015,247.80. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, insider Andrew J. Quigg sold 3,975 shares of Progressive stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $214.01, for a total transaction of $850,689.75. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 32,780 shares in the company, valued at $7,015,247.80. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Dyke Kahina Van sold 2,180 shares of Progressive stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $252.28, for a total transaction of $549,970.40. Following the sale, the director now owns 13,723 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,462,038.44. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 146,512 shares of company stock worth $33,912,874 over the last ninety days. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Progressive

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of PGR. Northwest Bank & Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Progressive in the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Davis Capital Management acquired a new position in Progressive during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. WR Wealth Planners LLC lifted its position in Progressive by 119.6% during the second quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 123 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Indiana Trust & Investment Management CO acquired a new position in Progressive during the first quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Hilltop National Bank lifted its position in Progressive by 126.0% during the second quarter. Hilltop National Bank now owns 165 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. 85.34% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Progressive Company 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.