Progressive (NYSE:PGR) Reaches New 12-Month Low – What’s Next?

The Progressive Corporation (NYSE:PGR)’s share price reached a new 52-week low on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $198.50 and last traded at $201.8630, with a volume of 307853 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $202.37.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on PGR. UBS Group cut their target price on Progressive from $268.00 to $261.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on Progressive from $250.00 to $252.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Raymond James Financial reduced their target price on Progressive from $305.00 to $265.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 17th. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of Progressive from $301.38 to $300.60 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “underweight” rating on shares of Progressive in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $259.39.

Progressive Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. The stock has a market cap of $119.05 billion, a PE ratio of 11.15, a P/E/G ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 0.34. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $222.63 and its 200-day moving average price is $233.40.

Progressive Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 8th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 2nd were given a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 2nd. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.2%. Progressive’s payout ratio is currently 2.19%.

Insider Transactions at Progressive

In related news, insider Steven Broz sold 1,344 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $224.80, for a total transaction of $302,131.20. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 26,354 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,924,379.20. This trade represents a 4.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO John P. Sauerland sold 5,000 shares of Progressive stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $228.48, for a total transaction of $1,142,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 223,024 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $50,956,523.52. This trade represents a 2.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 9,034 shares of company stock valued at $2,047,481 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in PGR. Brighton Jones LLC grew its holdings in shares of Progressive by 15.6% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 3,392 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $813,000 after buying an additional 457 shares in the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in Progressive during the fourth quarter worth about $269,000. Bison Wealth LLC grew its stake in Progressive by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 2,568 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $615,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its holdings in Progressive by 4.0% in the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 27,343 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $7,297,000 after acquiring an additional 1,058 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Progressive by 18.9% in the 2nd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 7,611 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,031,000 after purchasing an additional 1,212 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.34% of the company’s stock.

About Progressive

Progressive Corporation is a large U.S.-based property and casualty insurer that primarily underwrites personal auto insurance along with a broad suite of related products. Its offerings include coverage for private passenger automobiles, commercial auto fleets, motorcycles, boats and recreational vehicles, as well as homeowners, renters, umbrella and other specialty P&C products. Progressive also provides claims handling, risk management and related services to individual and commercial policyholders.

The company distributes its products through a mix of direct channels—online and by phone—and an extensive independent agent network.