PROG (NYSE:PRG) Shares Gap Up After Insider Buying Activity

PROG Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:PRG) gapped up before the market opened on Tuesday following insider buying activity. The stock had previously closed at $28.48, but opened at $29.77. PROG shares last traded at $29.42, with a volume of 39,357 shares.

Specifically, Director Douglas C. Curling purchased 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 21st. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $29.88 per share, with a total value of $298,800.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 45,913 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,371,880.44. This trade represents a 27.85 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $60.00 price objective on shares of PROG in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. TD Cowen raised PROG to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, PROG presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $53.83.

PROG Stock Up 2.4 %

The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $41.14 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $44.69. The company has a market capitalization of $1.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.42 and a beta of 2.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 2.34 and a current ratio of 5.24.

PROG (NYSE:PRG) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The company reported $0.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $623.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $612.67 million. PROG had a return on equity of 24.25% and a net margin of 8.01%. PROG’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.72 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that PROG Holdings, Inc. will post 3.45 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On PROG

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Mackenzie Financial Corp grew its stake in PROG by 170.3% in the fourth quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 29,706 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,255,000 after purchasing an additional 18,715 shares in the last quarter. Castleark Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of PROG during the 4th quarter worth about $4,416,000. PharVision Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in shares of PROG during the 4th quarter valued at about $288,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its stake in shares of PROG by 17.8% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 123,881 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,235,000 after buying an additional 18,760 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Voloridge Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in PROG by 11.7% in the fourth quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 257,141 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,867,000 after buying an additional 26,964 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.92% of the company’s stock.

About PROG

PROG Holdings, Inc (NYSE:PRG) is a financial technology holding company based in Salt Lake City, Utah with three business segments: Progressive Leasing, which offers lease-to-own transactions primarily to credit-challenged consumers through e-commerce and point-of-sale retail partners, via online, mobile, and in-store solutions; Vive Financial, which provides consumers who may not qualify for traditional prime lending with a variety of second-look, revolving credit products through private label and branded credit cards; and Four Technologies, which provides consumers of all credit backgrounds Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) options through four interest-free installments via its platform, Four.