Progressive (NYSE:PGR) Price Target Cut to $237.00

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) had its price target reduced by BMO Capital Markets from $239.00 to $237.00 in a research note published on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. They currently have an outperform rating on the insurance provider’s stock.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Progressive from $256.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded Progressive from a market perform rating to an outperform rating and lifted their price target for the company from $210.00 to $245.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Progressive from $256.00 to $255.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a research note on Monday, June 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Progressive from $210.00 to $239.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, Roth Mkm restated a buy rating and set a $235.00 price objective on shares of Progressive in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $224.18.

Progressive Trading Up 1.5 %

Shares of NYSE PGR traded up $3.37 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $221.73. The stock had a trading volume of 1,730,730 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,598,691. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a current ratio of 0.31. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $212.30 and its 200 day moving average price is $204.49. Progressive has a twelve month low of $124.06 and a twelve month high of $229.00. The firm has a market cap of $129.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 0.35.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 16th. The insurance provider reported $2.65 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.04 by $0.61. The business had revenue of $17.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.54 billion. Progressive had a return on equity of 33.01% and a net margin of 10.17%. The firm’s revenue was up 21.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.57 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Progressive will post 12.02 EPS for the current year.

Progressive Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 3rd will be paid a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.18%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 3rd. Progressive’s dividend payout ratio is presently 4.09%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Progressive

In other news, CEO Susan Patricia Griffith sold 43,371 shares of Progressive stock in a transaction on Monday, July 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $214.01, for a total transaction of $9,281,827.71. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 517,105 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $110,665,641.05. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Susan Patricia Griffith sold 43,371 shares of Progressive stock in a transaction on Monday, July 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $214.01, for a total value of $9,281,827.71. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 517,105 shares in the company, valued at approximately $110,665,641.05. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CAO Mariann Wojtkun Marshall sold 650 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $208.11, for a total transaction of $135,271.50. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,981 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $828,485.91. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 108,168 shares of company stock valued at $22,937,984 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Progressive

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Progressive by 157.2% in the 4th quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 5,779 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $921,000 after purchasing an additional 3,532 shares in the last quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in Progressive by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 11,621 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,851,000 after buying an additional 283 shares during the period. Valley National Advisers Inc. boosted its position in Progressive by 143.6% during the 4th quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 190 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 112 shares in the last quarter. Busey Bank purchased a new position in shares of Progressive during the 4th quarter worth approximately $202,000. Finally, Dearborn Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Progressive by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Dearborn Partners LLC now owns 6,934 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,104,000 after purchasing an additional 129 shares during the period. 85.34% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.