The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) CFO Sells $2,799,400.00 in Stock

The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) CFO John P. Sauerland sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $279.94, for a total value of $2,799,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 269,566 shares in the company, valued at $75,462,306.04. This trade represents a 3.58 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link.

Progressive Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE PGR opened at $281.84 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $165.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.57, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.42. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $252.70 and its 200 day moving average is $252.11. The Progressive Co. has a 52 week low of $191.00 and a 52 week high of $287.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.31.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The insurance provider reported $4.08 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.44 by $0.64. Progressive had a net margin of 11.25% and a return on equity of 33.79%. Sell-side analysts forecast that The Progressive Co. will post 14.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Progressive Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 9th were paid a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.14%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 10th. Progressive’s payout ratio is presently 2.78%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PGR has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Progressive from $251.00 to $256.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on Progressive from $273.00 to $267.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 16th. HSBC lowered Progressive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $267.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Raymond James raised Progressive from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $305.00 price target for the company in a report on Thursday, December 26th. Finally, Roth Mkm upped their price objective on shares of Progressive from $290.00 to $315.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $277.59.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Progressive

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Webster Bank N. A. bought a new stake in shares of Progressive during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Hager Investment Management Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Progressive in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Progressive in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Valley National Advisers Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Progressive by 3,000.0% during the 4th quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 124 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.