The Progressive Corporation (NYSE:PGR) Given Consensus Rating of “Hold” by Brokerages

The Progressive Corporation (NYSE:PGR) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Hold” by the twenty-two research firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $234.8947.

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $230.00 price target on shares of Progressive in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. Raymond James Financial restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $245.00 price objective on shares of Progressive in a research report on Monday. Mizuho dropped their target price on shares of Progressive from $236.00 to $230.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, September 16th. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Progressive from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $190.00 to $210.00 in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Roth Capital reissued a “buy” rating and set a $245.00 price target on shares of Progressive in a research note on Thursday, August 20th.

Progressive Stock Performance

NYSE:PGR opened at $203.03 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $118.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.27. The company has a current ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. Progressive has a 1 year low of $189.20 and a 1 year high of $248.17. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $214.42 and a 200-day moving average of $208.44.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 15th. The insurance provider reported $5.67 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.64 by $1.03. The firm had revenue of $23.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $19.49 billion. Progressive had a return on equity of 32.92% and a net margin of 12.84%.The business’s revenue was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $5.40 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Progressive will post 17.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Progressive Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 9th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 1st will be given a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 1st. Progressive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 2.01%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Andrew Quigg sold 3,499 shares of Progressive stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.00, for a total value of $769,780.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 42,595 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,370,900. This trade represents a 7.59% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Lori Niederst sold 7,339 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $209.29, for a total value of $1,535,979.31. Following the sale, the insider owned 42,567 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,908,847.43. The trade was a 14.71% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders sold 105,557 shares of company stock worth $22,715,077. 0.32% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. QRG Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Progressive by 19.2% during the second quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 86,011 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $18,789,000 after buying an additional 13,850 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. lifted its holdings in Progressive by 22.2% in the second quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 13,750 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $3,004,000 after buying an additional 2,495 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in Progressive by 1.0% in the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,108,462 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $460,593,000 after acquiring an additional 19,976 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its stake in Progressive by 2.5% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 26,526,959 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $5,794,814,000 after acquiring an additional 656,249 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Talon Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Progressive during the 2nd quarter worth $213,000. Institutional investors own 85.34% of the company’s stock.

Progressive Company Profile

Progressive Corporation, founded in 1937 and headquartered in Mayfield Village, Ohio, is an insurance company that primarily serves customers in the United States. The company is best known for its personal and commercial auto insurance businesses and distributes products through independent agents, direct channels and digital platforms.

Progressive offers a broad range of insurance products, including coverage for automobiles, motorcycles, boats, recreational vehicles, homes and renters.