The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) Director Jeffrey D. Kelly Sells 10,000 Shares

The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) Director Jeffrey D. Kelly sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total value of $2,500,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 27,741 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,935,250. This represents a 26.50 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link.

Progressive Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE:PGR traded up $2.80 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $249.20. The stock had a trading volume of 2,355,573 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,619,900. The company has a current ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The Progressive Co. has a twelve month low of $176.37 and a twelve month high of $270.62. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $247.67 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $244.27. The firm has a market cap of $145.98 billion, a PE ratio of 18.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.62 and a beta of 0.41.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The insurance provider reported $4.08 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.44 by $0.64. Progressive had a net margin of 11.27% and a return on equity of 33.10%. On average, research analysts predict that The Progressive Co. will post 13.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Progressive Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 9th were given a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.16%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 10th. Progressive’s dividend payout ratio is presently 2.91%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Progressive

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Davis Capital Management bought a new position in shares of Progressive in the third quarter valued at $25,000. Webster Bank N. A. bought a new stake in Progressive in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Hager Investment Management Services LLC bought a new position in Progressive during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Progressive by 54.7% in the 4th quarter. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 116 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Valley National Advisers Inc. lifted its position in Progressive by 3,000.0% during the fourth quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 124 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. 85.34% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on PGR shares. HSBC lowered shares of Progressive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $267.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Progressive from $331.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Raymond James upgraded Progressive from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $305.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Thursday, December 26th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Progressive from $310.00 to $300.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Progressive from $257.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Progressive currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $275.29.

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.