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

Shares of The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) have received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the seventeen ratings firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $270.69.

A number of brokerages have issued reports on PGR. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Progressive from $331.00 to $335.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 18th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on Progressive from $280.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Hsbc Global Res downgraded Progressive from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Progressive from $257.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price target on Progressive from $197.00 to $237.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th.

Progressive Trading Down 0.4 %

Progressive stock opened at $242.78 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $254.17 and a 200 day moving average of $236.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $142.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.56, a P/E/G ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 0.38. Progressive has a 12-month low of $149.14 and a 12-month high of $270.62. The company has a current ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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. Progressive had a net margin of 11.27% and a return on equity of 33.10%. The business had revenue of $19.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.95 billion. As a group, research analysts predict that Progressive will post 13.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Progressive Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 16th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 9th. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.16%. Progressive’s payout ratio is 2.91%.

Insider Transactions at Progressive

In related news, 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 completion of the sale, the director now owns 13,723 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,462,038.44. The trade was a 13.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO John P. Sauerland sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $268.09, for a total value of $2,680,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 292,958 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $78,539,110.22. The trade was a 3.30 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 25,839 shares of company stock worth $6,718,965. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in PGR. DGS Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Progressive during the third quarter worth approximately $458,000. Oddo BHF Asset Management Sas purchased a new stake in shares of Progressive during the third quarter worth approximately $35,253,000. Synovus Financial Corp grew its holdings in Progressive by 6.4% in the 3rd quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 2,069 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $525,000 after buying an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC grew its holdings in Progressive by 65.8% in the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 72,163 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $18,312,000 after buying an additional 28,636 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB grew its holdings in Progressive by 270.5% in the 3rd quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 11,833 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $3,003,000 after buying an additional 8,639 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.