Brokerages Set The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) PT at $257.18

The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) has received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the nineteen analysts that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, twelve have assigned a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $257.18.

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. HSBC upgraded Progressive from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $253.00 target price for the company in a report on Monday, August 12th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on shares of Progressive from $256.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Progressive from $260.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Progressive from $281.00 to $282.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of Progressive from $232.00 to $225.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Philip Bleser sold 2,129 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $219.08, for a total value of $466,421.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 974 shares in the company, valued at approximately $213,383.92. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Susan Patricia Griffith sold 43,371 shares of the 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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 517,105 shares in the company, valued at $110,665,641.05. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Philip Bleser sold 2,129 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $219.08, for a total transaction of $466,421.32. Following the transaction, the director now owns 974 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $213,383.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 144,332 shares of company stock valued at $33,362,904 over the last ninety days. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Progressive

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of PGR. Gilbert & Cook Inc. boosted its position in Progressive by 8.6% in the 4th quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. now owns 2,938 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $468,000 after purchasing an additional 233 shares in the last quarter. 9258 Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Progressive by 18.8% during the fourth quarter. 9258 Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,534 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $404,000 after buying an additional 401 shares in the last quarter. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Progressive during the fourth quarter valued at $307,000. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new position in Progressive in the fourth quarter valued at $150,000. Finally, Congress Wealth Management LLC DE acquired a new position in shares of Progressive in the fourth quarter worth about $379,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.34% of the company’s stock.

Progressive Trading Down 1.8 %

NYSE PGR opened at $252.40 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $147.83 billion, a PE ratio of 25.97, a PEG ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 0.35. Progressive has a 12 month low of $137.59 and a 12 month high of $260.46. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $236.62 and its 200-day moving average price is $218.52. The company has a current ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 16th. The insurance provider reported $2.65 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.04 by $0.61. The business had revenue of $17.90 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.54 billion. Progressive had a net margin of 10.17% and a return on equity of 33.01%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 21.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.57 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Progressive will post 12.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Progressive Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 3rd. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.16%. Progressive’s payout ratio is currently 4.09%.

About Progressive

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.