Marshfield Associates Has $180.18 Million Holdings in The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR)

Marshfield Associates lowered its holdings in The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) by 31.9% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 867,472 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 405,654 shares during the quarter. Progressive comprises about 4.0% of Marshfield Associates’ investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest position. Marshfield Associates’ holdings in Progressive were worth $180,183,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. increased its stake in shares of Progressive by 11.8% in the 2nd quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 455 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $95,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the period. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. increased its position in Progressive by 10.4% in the second quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 509 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $106,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the period. Graypoint LLC raised its holdings in Progressive by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. Graypoint LLC now owns 4,202 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $873,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. City State Bank lifted its position in Progressive by 8.2% during the 2nd quarter. City State Bank now owns 661 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $137,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. Finally, GYL Financial Synergies LLC raised its stake in shares of Progressive by 4.0% during the second quarter. GYL Financial Synergies LLC now owns 1,302 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $270,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. 85.34% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Philip Bleser sold 2,129 shares of Progressive stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $219.08, for a total transaction of $466,421.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 974 shares in the company, valued at approximately $213,383.92. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Philip Bleser sold 2,129 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $219.08, for a total value of $466,421.32. Following 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 SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Andrew J. Quigg sold 3,975 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $214.01, for a total transaction of $850,689.75. Following the sale, the insider now owns 32,780 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,015,247.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 144,332 shares of company stock valued at $33,362,904 over the last 90 days. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Progressive Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE PGR opened at $252.40 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $147.83 billion, a PE ratio of 25.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 0.35. The Progressive Co. has a 52 week low of $137.59 and a 52 week high of $260.46. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $236.62 and a 200 day moving average price of $218.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a current ratio of 0.31.

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

Progressive Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PGR has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of Progressive from $232.00 to $225.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on Progressive from $239.00 to $237.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on Progressive from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd. Hsbc Global Res raised Progressive from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Progressive from $281.00 to $282.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $257.18.

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.