Stonegate Investment Group LLC Invests $325,000 in The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR)

Stonegate Investment Group LLC bought a new position in shares of The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 1,357 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $325,000.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Davis Capital Management acquired a new stake in shares of Progressive during the third quarter worth $25,000. Webster Bank N. A. bought a new position in Progressive during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. raised its stake in Progressive by 114.1% in the 3rd quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. now owns 137 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Kimelman & Baird LLC acquired a new stake in Progressive in the 2nd quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Friedenthal Financial acquired a new position in shares of Progressive during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $49,000. 85.34% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Progressive Price Performance

Shares of PGR opened at $244.86 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The stock has a market cap of $143.44 billion, a PE ratio of 17.80, a PEG ratio of 0.62 and a beta of 0.41. The Progressive Co. has a 12-month low of $175.50 and a 12-month high of $270.62. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $248.08 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $244.03.

Progressive Dividend Announcement

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Andrew J. Quigg sold 681 shares of Progressive stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $242.10, for a total value of $164,870.10. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 33,612 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,137,465.20. The trade was a 1.99 % 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, CEO Susan Patricia Griffith sold 11,021 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $243.29, for a total transaction of $2,681,299.09. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 473,736 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $115,255,231.44. This represents a 2.27 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 42,506 shares of company stock valued at $10,531,159 in the last ninety days. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on PGR. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Progressive from $299.00 to $302.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. StockNews.com raised Progressive from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Progressive from $257.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Progressive from $277.00 to $285.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on shares of Progressive from $273.00 to $267.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $274.65.

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.