Progressive (NYSE:PGR) Reaches New 1-Year High – Time to Buy?

Shares of The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) reached a new 52-week high on Friday . The stock traded as high as $264.00 and last traded at $264.00, with a volume of 54521 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $257.50.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on PGR shares. TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of Progressive from $197.00 to $237.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on shares of Progressive from $239.00 to $237.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on Progressive from $262.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. Roth Mkm upped their price objective on Progressive from $270.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Finally, HSBC upgraded Progressive from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $253.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 12th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Progressive currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $269.56.

Progressive Stock Performance

The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $252.22 and its 200 day simple moving average is $229.82. The company has a market capitalization of $149.84 billion, a PE ratio of 18.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 0.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.30 and a quick ratio of 0.30.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The insurance provider reported $3.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.40 by $0.18. The company had revenue of $19.43 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.95 billion. Progressive had a return on equity of 33.10% and a net margin of 11.27%. On average, research analysts predict that The Progressive Co. will post 13.11 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Progressive news, Director Dyke Kahina Van sold 2,180 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $252.28, for a total transaction of $549,970.40. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 13,723 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,462,038.44. This trade represents a 13.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Steven Broz sold 2,982 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $260.00, for a total transaction of $775,320.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 29,334 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,626,840. This trade represents a 9.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 65,331 shares of company stock worth $16,415,812 over the last quarter. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Progressive

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of PGR. Davis Capital Management purchased a new position in Progressive in the third quarter valued at $25,000. WR Wealth Planners LLC raised its position in shares of Progressive by 119.6% during the 2nd quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 123 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Hilltop National Bank raised its position in shares of Progressive by 126.0% during the 2nd quarter. Hilltop National Bank now owns 165 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. lifted its stake in Progressive by 114.1% during the third quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. now owns 137 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LRI Investments LLC acquired a new position in Progressive in the first quarter valued at approximately $36,000. 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.