The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) Receives $276.12 Consensus Target Price from Brokerages

Shares of The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) have been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the eighteen research firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $276.12.

Several research analysts recently weighed in on PGR shares. Bank of America increased their price objective on Progressive from $331.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Progressive from $251.00 to $256.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. HSBC lowered Progressive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $267.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Progressive from $300.00 to $307.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price target on Progressive from $197.00 to $237.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th.

Progressive Stock Performance

Shares of PGR stock opened at $265.99 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $155.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.47, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.42. The business’s 50 day moving average is $246.89 and its two-hundred day moving average is $249.35. The company has a current ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. Progressive has a 12-month low of $186.94 and a 12-month high of $270.79.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The insurance provider reported $4.08 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.44 by $0.64. Progressive had a return on equity of 33.79% and a net margin of 11.25%. Analysts expect that Progressive will post 14.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Progressive Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 9th were issued a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.15%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 10th. Progressive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 2.78%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Lori A. Niederst sold 3,855 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $247.06, for a total value of $952,416.30. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 39,040 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,645,222.40. The trade was a 8.99 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Andrew J. Quigg sold 681 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $242.10, for a total value of $164,870.10. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 33,612 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,137,465.20. The trade was a 1.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 56,361 shares of company stock valued at $13,983,575 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Progressive

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in PGR. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. raised its stake in Progressive by 38.7% during the 3rd quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 631 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $160,000 after acquiring an additional 176 shares during the last quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Progressive by 20.9% during the 3rd quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 237 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $60,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Progressive during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $212,000. BLB&B Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Progressive during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $210,000. Finally, Private Advisor Group LLC raised its stake in Progressive by 10.9% during the 3rd quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 11,958 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $3,034,000 after acquiring an additional 1,176 shares during the last quarter. 85.34% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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.