The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) Shares Purchased by Franklin Resources Inc.

Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in shares of The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) by 2.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,431,389 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 32,034 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. owned about 0.24% of Progressive worth $342,975,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in PGR. Webster Bank N. A. purchased a new stake in Progressive in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Hager Investment Management Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Progressive in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Progressive by 54.7% in the 4th quarter. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 116 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. grew its position in Progressive by 3,000.0% during the 4th quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 124 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the period. Finally, Atala Financial Inc acquired a new stake in Progressive during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.34% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Susan Patricia Griffith sold 9,066 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $242.10, for a total transaction of $2,194,878.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 473,736 shares in the company, valued at $114,691,485.60. This trade represents a 1.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO Mariann Wojtkun Marshall sold 191 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $242.10, for a total value of $46,241.10. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,982 shares in the company, valued at $964,042.20. This represents a 4.58 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 66,255 shares of company stock valued at $17,250,271. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. Bank of America lowered their price objective on Progressive from $318.00 to $300.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Progressive from $313.00 to $317.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Progressive from $300.00 to $307.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on Progressive from $294.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, Roth Mkm raised their price objective on Progressive from $290.00 to $315.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $281.06.

Progressive Price Performance

Shares of PGR stock opened at $283.44 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 company has a market capitalization of $166.16 billion, a PE ratio of 19.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.35. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $266.11 and its two-hundred day moving average is $256.15. The Progressive Co. has a 12 month low of $201.34 and a 12 month high of $292.99.

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

Progressive Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be paid a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.14%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 3rd. Progressive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 2.78%.

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.