The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the nineteen research firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $257.18.

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Bank of America upped their target price on Progressive from $294.00 to $312.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Roth Mkm raised their target price on Progressive from $270.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on Progressive from $256.00 to $257.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on Progressive from $232.00 to $225.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of Progressive from $262.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th.

Progressive Stock Performance

PGR opened at $251.10 on Tuesday. Progressive has a 52-week low of $137.59 and a 52-week high of $260.46. The company has a quick ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The company has a market cap of $147.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 0.35. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $237.81 and its 200-day moving average price is $219.27.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 16th. The insurance provider reported $2.65 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.04 by $0.61. The firm had revenue of $17.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.54 billion. Progressive had a return on equity of 33.01% and a net margin of 10.17%. Progressive’s revenue for the quarter was up 21.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.57 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Progressive will post 12.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Progressive Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 3rd will be paid a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.16%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 3rd. Progressive’s dividend payout ratio is presently 4.09%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Progressive news, insider Andrew J. Quigg sold 3,975 shares of Progressive stock in a transaction on Monday, July 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $214.01, for a total transaction of $850,689.75. Following the sale, the insider now owns 32,780 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,015,247.80. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other Progressive news, Director Philip Bleser sold 2,129 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $219.08, for a total transaction of $466,421.32. Following the transaction, the director now owns 974 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $213,383.92. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Andrew J. Quigg sold 3,975 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $214.01, for a total value of $850,689.75. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 32,780 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,015,247.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 144,332 shares of company stock worth $33,362,904. 0.34% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Progressive

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Gilbert & Cook Inc. grew its stake in shares of Progressive by 8.6% in the 4th quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. now owns 2,938 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $468,000 after buying an additional 233 shares during the period. 9258 Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Progressive by 18.8% during the fourth quarter. 9258 Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,534 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $404,000 after acquiring an additional 401 shares during the last quarter. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Progressive in the fourth quarter valued at $307,000. Quest Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Progressive in the 4th quarter valued at $150,000. Finally, Congress Wealth Management LLC DE purchased a new position in shares of Progressive during the 4th quarter worth $379,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.34% of the company’s stock.

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.