The Progressive Corporation (NYSE:PGR) Shares to Pay Quarterly Dividend of $0.10

The Progressive Corporation (NYSE:PGR) announced a quarterly dividend on Friday, August 7th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.10 per share by the insurance provider on Friday, October 9th. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 1st.

Progressive has increased its dividend payment by an average of 0.1%annually over the last three years. Progressive has a payout ratio of 2.5% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect Progressive to earn $16.17 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.40 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 2.5%.

Progressive Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:PGR opened at $209.37 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The stock has a market cap of $121.72 billion, a PE ratio of 10.50, a PEG ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.27. The company’s fifty day moving average is $214.24 and its 200 day moving average is $208.38. Progressive has a 52 week low of $189.20 and a 52 week high of $248.17.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 15th. The insurance provider reported $5.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.64 by $1.03. The business had revenue of $23.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $19.49 billion. Progressive had a net margin of 12.84% and a return on equity of 32.92%. The company’s revenue was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $5.40 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Progressive will post 17.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Progressive

In related news, CEO Susan Griffith sold 37,338 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $219.50, for a total value of $8,195,691.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 485,438 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $106,553,641. This represents a 7.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Karen Bailo sold 8,452 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $212.71, for a total transaction of $1,797,824.92. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 32,348 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,880,743.08. This trade represents a 20.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 106,782 shares of company stock valued at $22,965,332 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.32% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Progressive

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in PGR. Unique Wealth LLC increased its stake in shares of Progressive by 4.3% during the 2nd quarter. Unique Wealth LLC now owns 1,240 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $271,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Phillips Wealth Planners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Progressive by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Phillips Wealth Planners LLC now owns 1,916 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $436,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the period. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in Progressive by 1.4% in the 2nd quarter. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC now owns 4,072 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $890,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Brown Miller Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Progressive by 2.4% during the second quarter. Brown Miller Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,365 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $517,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the period. Finally, Sunbelt Securities Inc. grew its holdings in Progressive by 7.1% during the first quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 857 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $170,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the period. 85.34% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Progressive

Progressive Corporation is an insurance holding company that provides personal and commercial insurance products in the United States. Its primary business is automobile insurance, serving consumers through direct channels, independent agents and other distribution partners.

The company offers coverage for personal vehicles, motorcycles, recreational vehicles, boats and other specialty vehicles. Its personal insurance portfolio also includes homeowners, renters, condominium and other property coverage, while its commercial business provides insurance for commercial vehicles and related risks.