Castleark Management LLC Invests $8.14 Million in The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR)

Castleark Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 32,060 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $8,136,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Davis Capital Management bought a new position in shares of Progressive in the third quarter worth about $25,000. WR Wealth Planners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Progressive by 119.6% in the 2nd quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 123 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the period. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. grew its position in shares of Progressive by 114.1% during the 3rd quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. now owns 137 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Kimelman & Baird LLC purchased a new position in shares of Progressive during the second quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Sachetta LLC raised its holdings in shares of Progressive by 34.0% in the second quarter. Sachetta LLC now owns 209 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. 85.34% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on shares of Progressive from $257.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Progressive from $281.00 to $282.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on Progressive from $262.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Progressive from $300.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Progressive from $242.00 to $251.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $269.81.

Insider Activity

In other Progressive news, CFO John P. Sauerland sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $268.09, for a total value of $2,680,900.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 292,958 shares in the company, valued at approximately $78,539,110.22. This trade represents a 3.30 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Steven Broz sold 2,981 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $251.15, for a total transaction of $748,678.15. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 26,353 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,618,555.95. The trade was a 10.16 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 25,839 shares of company stock worth $6,718,965 over the last three months. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Progressive Stock Down 2.6 %

Shares of PGR opened at $254.56 on Friday. The Progressive Co. has a 52 week low of $149.14 and a 52 week high of $270.62. The company has a market capitalization of $149.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.50, a PEG ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 0.38. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $254.57 and its 200-day moving average price is $234.80. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25.

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, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.40 by $0.18. Progressive had a net margin of 11.27% and a return on equity of 33.10%. The firm had revenue of $19.43 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.95 billion. On average, sell-side analysts predict that The Progressive Co. will post 13.2 EPS for the current year.

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.