Morgan Stanley Cuts Progressive (NYSE:PGR) Price Target to $190.00

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) had its price target cut by Morgan Stanley from $205.00 to $190.00 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have an underweight rating on the insurance provider’s stock.

A number of other brokerages have also recently issued reports on PGR. Bank of America decreased their price objective on shares of Progressive from $305.00 to $295.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 25th. UBS Group raised their target price on Progressive from $218.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, March 23rd. Argus upgraded Progressive to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on Progressive from $232.00 to $208.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Progressive from $303.00 to $275.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $238.39.

Progressive Stock Up 0.9%

NYSE PGR opened at $195.14 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The company has a market cap of $114.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.14, a PEG ratio of 5.59 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a 50 day moving average of $205.16 and a 200-day moving average of $218.27. Progressive has a 1-year low of $192.02 and a 1-year high of $289.96.

Progressive Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 2nd will be given a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 2nd. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.2%. Progressive’s payout ratio is 2.08%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CIO Jonathan S. Bauer sold 3,105 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.35, for a total transaction of $634,506.75. Following the transaction, the executive directly owned 26,249 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,363,983.15. This represents a 10.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Carl G. Joyce sold 270 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.50, for a total transaction of $55,755.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 558 shares in the company, valued at $115,227. This trade represents a 32.61% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 11,687 shares of company stock valued at $2,413,044 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Progressive

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Progressive in the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,836,094,000. Capital International Investors boosted its position in shares of Progressive by 78.9% during the third quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 13,704,197 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $3,384,082,000 after buying an additional 6,045,732 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in Progressive by 181.8% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 6,506,302 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,481,615,000 after buying an additional 4,197,212 shares in the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. grew its holdings in Progressive by 32.8% during the second quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 10,972,574 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,928,141,000 after buying an additional 2,709,417 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors raised its position in Progressive by 26.1% in the 3rd quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 11,167,940 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $2,757,905,000 after buying an additional 2,314,864 shares during the last quarter. 85.34% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Progressive Company Profile

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.