The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) CFO John P. Sauerland Sells 10,000 Shares

The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) CFO John P. Sauerland sold 10,000 shares of Progressive stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $279.94, for a total transaction of $2,799,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 269,566 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $75,462,306.04. This trade represents a 3.58 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link.

Progressive Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:PGR opened at $284.95 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.31 and a quick ratio of 0.30. The Progressive Co. has a 12 month low of $187.32 and a 12 month high of $285.28. The firm has a market capitalization of $166.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.79, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.42. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $251.13 and its 200 day moving average price is $251.57.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The insurance provider reported $4.08 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.44 by $0.64. Progressive had a return on equity of 33.79% and a net margin of 11.25%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that The Progressive Co. will post 14.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Progressive Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 9th were paid a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.14%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 10th. Progressive’s dividend payout ratio is currently 2.78%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on PGR shares. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on shares of Progressive from $273.00 to $267.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 16th. TD Cowen lifted their target price on Progressive from $197.00 to $237.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Raymond James upgraded Progressive from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $305.00 price target on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 26th. HSBC cut Progressive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $267.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Progressive from $251.00 to $256.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $277.59.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Progressive

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of PGR. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Progressive in the 4th quarter valued at $1,843,045,000. GQG Partners LLC increased its stake in Progressive by 67.6% in the fourth quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 5,171,501 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,239,143,000 after purchasing an additional 2,085,833 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Progressive in the fourth quarter valued at about $408,416,000. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Progressive by 13.2% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 14,425,792 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $3,652,235,000 after buying an additional 1,682,213 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors grew its holdings in shares of Progressive by 34.3% during the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 6,058,187 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,451,602,000 after buying an additional 1,547,677 shares during the last quarter. 85.34% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.