Insider Selling: Progressive (NYSE:PGR) Director Sells 7,000 Shares

The Progressive Corporation (NYSE:PGR) Director Jeffrey Kelly sold 7,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $216.33, for a total value of $1,514,310.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 22,546 shares in the company, valued at $4,877,376.18. The trade was a 23.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website.

Progressive Stock Down 1.8%

NYSE PGR traded down $3.91 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $216.59. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,236,177 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,272,353. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $201.02 and its 200 day simple moving average is $206.81. The Progressive Corporation has a twelve month low of $189.20 and a twelve month high of $267.92. The company has a current ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $126.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.02, a PEG ratio of 6.61 and a beta of 0.28.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 15th. The insurance provider reported $4.80 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.67 by $0.13. Progressive had a net margin of 12.92% and a return on equity of 33.47%. The firm had revenue of $22.19 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $23.51 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $4.37 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 6.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that The Progressive Corporation will post 16.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Progressive Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 2nd. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.2%. Progressive’s payout ratio is presently 2.03%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have issued reports on PGR. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $208.00 price target on Progressive in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. Argus upgraded Progressive to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $259.00 target price on shares of Progressive in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Progressive from $222.00 to $219.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, June 18th. Finally, Barclays set a $247.00 price target on Progressive in a research report on Wednesday, March 18th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $237.58.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Progressive

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Sapient Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of Progressive by 17.0% in the 1st quarter. Sapient Capital LLC now owns 3,453 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $685,000 after buying an additional 501 shares during the last quarter. Western Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Progressive by 17.0% during the first quarter. Western Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,590 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,505,000 after acquiring an additional 1,104 shares during the last quarter. First National Bank of Mount Dora Trust Investment Services lifted its holdings in Progressive by 42.0% during the first quarter. First National Bank of Mount Dora Trust Investment Services now owns 36,751 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $7,286,000 after acquiring an additional 10,879 shares during the period. Wealthquest Corp purchased a new position in Progressive in the first quarter worth $201,000. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its position in Progressive by 10.1% in the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 9,698 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,923,000 after purchasing an additional 891 shares during the last quarter. 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.