The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) CEO Susan Patricia Griffith Sells 9,066 Shares

The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) CEO Susan Patricia Griffith sold 9,066 shares of Progressive stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $242.10, for a total value of $2,194,878.60. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 473,736 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $114,691,485.60. This trade represents a 1.88 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink.

Progressive Stock Down 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE PGR traded down $2.67 during trading on Monday, reaching $239.55. The company had a trading volume of 2,126,756 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,226,707. The Progressive Co. has a 12-month low of $162.35 and a 12-month high of $270.62. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The business’s 50-day moving average is $251.55 and its 200 day moving average is $240.50. The stock has a market cap of $140.33 billion, a PE ratio of 17.41, a P/E/G ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 0.41.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 15th. The insurance provider reported $3.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.40 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $19.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.95 billion. Progressive had a net margin of 11.27% and a return on equity of 33.10%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that The Progressive Co. will post 13.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Progressive Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 16th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 9th will be issued a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 10th. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.17%. Progressive’s payout ratio is currently 2.91%.

Institutional Trading of Progressive

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PGR. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its holdings in Progressive by 98.2% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 789 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $189,000 after buying an additional 391 shares in the last quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Progressive by 90.9% during the 3rd quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 7,813 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,983,000 after acquiring an additional 3,720 shares during the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co grew its stake in shares of Progressive by 84.3% in the third quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 25,738 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $6,531,000 after acquiring an additional 11,770 shares during the period. Sycomore Asset Management raised its holdings in shares of Progressive by 9.5% during the second quarter. Sycomore Asset Management now owns 28,128 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $5,856,000 after purchasing an additional 2,450 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its position in Progressive by 7.0% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 5,067,924 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,286,036,000 after purchasing an additional 330,667 shares during the period. 85.34% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PGR has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price 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 Global Res cut shares of Progressive from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Progressive from $251.00 to $256.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Progressive from $280.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, HSBC lowered shares of Progressive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $267.00 target price for the company. in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $275.00.

Progressive Company Profile

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.