Jefferies Financial Group Lowers Progressive (NYSE:PGR) Price Target to $287.00

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) had its target price dropped by equities researchers at Jefferies Financial Group from $309.00 to $287.00 in a report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the insurance provider’s stock. Jefferies Financial Group’s price target would suggest a potential upside of 18.23% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other research analysts have also weighed in on the company. UBS Group dropped their target price on Progressive from $280.00 to $268.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 21st. BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on Progressive from $288.00 to $281.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 18th. Bank of America dropped their target price on Progressive from $337.00 to $336.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Progressive from $290.00 to $280.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 14th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on Progressive from $290.00 to $268.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $283.94.

Progressive Trading Down 0.9%

Shares of Progressive stock opened at $242.75 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a current ratio of 0.31. Progressive has a 52 week low of $220.33 and a 52 week high of $292.99. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $255.02 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $266.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $142.30 billion, a PE ratio of 13.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 0.33.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 16th. The insurance provider reported $4.88 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.43 by $0.45. Progressive had a return on equity of 35.37% and a net margin of 12.66%. The firm had revenue of $20.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $20.39 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.48 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Progressive will post 14.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Progressive

In other Progressive news, insider Patrick K. Callahan sold 6,232 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $242.16, for a total value of $1,509,141.12. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 27,844 shares in the company, valued at $6,742,703.04. The trade was a 18.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Karen Bailo sold 8,922 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.24, for a total value of $2,223,719.28. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 32,346 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,061,917.04. The trade was a 21.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 104,250 shares of company stock valued at $26,332,348 in the last ninety days. 0.33% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Progressive

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in PGR. Highline Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Progressive by 114.0% in the first quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 92 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the period. TruNorth Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Progressive by 210.0% in the first quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 93 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Progressive in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. HWG Holdings LP purchased a new position in shares of Progressive in the first quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Garde Capital Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Progressive in the first quarter valued at $33,000. 85.34% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.