Park Avenue Securities LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR)

Park Avenue Securities LLC lowered its position in shares of The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 18,861 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 78 shares during the period. Park Avenue Securities LLC’s holdings in Progressive were worth $4,786,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of PGR. Davis Capital Management purchased a new position in shares of Progressive during the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. WR Wealth Planners LLC increased its stake in Progressive by 119.6% in the 2nd quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 123 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Indiana Trust & Investment Management CO bought a new position in Progressive in the 1st quarter worth about $32,000. Northwest Bank & Trust Co bought a new stake in shares of Progressive during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Finally, Hilltop National Bank grew its holdings in shares of Progressive by 126.0% during the second quarter. Hilltop National Bank now owns 165 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.34% of the company’s stock.

Progressive Trading Up 1.2 %

PGR traded up $3.09 during trading on Friday, hitting $255.36. 1,951,766 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,503,230. The firm has a market capitalization of $149.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 0.35. The Progressive Co. has a 12-month low of $141.73 and a 12-month high of $260.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.31 and a quick ratio of 0.31. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $241.69 and a 200 day moving average of $220.92.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) last posted 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 company had revenue of $17.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.54 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.57 earnings per share. Progressive’s revenue for the quarter was up 21.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that The Progressive Co. will post 13.02 EPS for the current year.

Progressive Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced 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 of this dividend is Thursday, October 3rd. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.16%. Progressive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 4.09%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Progressive from $262.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. HSBC raised shares of Progressive from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $253.00 price objective for the company in a report on Monday, August 12th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on Progressive from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Bank of America upped their price objective on Progressive from $294.00 to $312.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Finally, Barclays began coverage on Progressive in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $367.00 price objective on the stock. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $257.18.

Insider Activity at Progressive

In other Progressive news, CFO John P. Sauerland sold 22,708 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $214.01, for a total transaction of $4,859,739.08. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 302,958 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $64,836,041.58. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, CFO John P. Sauerland sold 22,708 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $214.01, for a total value of $4,859,739.08. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 302,958 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $64,836,041.58. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Dyke Kahina Van sold 2,180 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $252.28, for a total transaction of $549,970.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 13,723 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,462,038.44. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 146,512 shares of company stock worth $33,912,874 over the last quarter. 0.34% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.