Monetary Management Group Inc. Raises Stake in The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR)

Monetary Management Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) by 216.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,215 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,515 shares during the quarter. Monetary Management Group Inc.’s holdings in Progressive were worth $531,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

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

Progressive Stock Performance

Progressive stock opened at $273.15 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $271.29 and a 200 day moving average price of $257.07. The company has a current ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The Progressive Co. has a 52 week low of $201.34 and a 52 week high of $292.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $160.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.97, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.38.

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

Progressive Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 3rd. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.15%. Progressive’s dividend payout ratio is presently 2.78%.

Insider Transactions at Progressive

In other news, CFO John P. Sauerland sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.94, for a total value of $2,759,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 258,024 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $71,199,142.56. This represents a 3.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Susan Patricia Griffith sold 11,021 shares of Progressive stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $243.29, for a total transaction of $2,681,299.09. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 473,736 shares in the company, valued at $115,255,231.44. The trade was a 2.27 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 56,317 shares of company stock worth $14,844,282 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on PGR shares. Morgan Stanley raised their price target 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 lowered their price objective on shares of Progressive from $300.00 to $288.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on shares of Progressive from $273.00 to $267.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Roth Mkm upped their price target on shares of Progressive from $290.00 to $315.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Raymond James raised shares of Progressive from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $305.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 26th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $281.59.

Progressive 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.