PROG (NYSE:PRG) Shares Up 5.9%

PROG Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:PRG) shares traded up 5.9% on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $36.00 and last traded at $34.70. 119,711 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 69% from the average session volume of 390,350 shares. The stock had previously closed at $32.77.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. TD Cowen began coverage on shares of PROG in a research report on Friday, March 8th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $37.00 target price for the company. Stephens upgraded shares of PROG from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $39.60.

PROG Stock Up 8.8 %

The company has a current ratio of 3.66, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00. The firm has a market cap of $1.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.05 and a beta of 2.08. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $32.20 and its two-hundred day moving average is $30.63.

PROG (NYSE:PRG) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 21st. The company reported $0.72 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.67 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $577.40 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $568.35 million. PROG had a net margin of 5.77% and a return on equity of 28.83%. PROG’s quarterly revenue was down 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.84 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that PROG Holdings, Inc. will post 2.83 earnings per share for the current year.

PROG Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 14th were given a dividend of $0.12 per share. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.35%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 13th. PROG’s payout ratio is currently 16.22%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its position in shares of PROG by 719.1% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 178,859 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,529,000 after acquiring an additional 157,024 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its holdings in shares of PROG by 33.8% during the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 145,706 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,839,000 after buying an additional 36,776 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of PROG by 161.0% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 107,286 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,563,000 after purchasing an additional 66,185 shares in the last quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund purchased a new stake in PROG in the third quarter worth approximately $921,000. Finally, Nomura Holdings Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of PROG by 621.5% during the 3rd quarter. Nomura Holdings Inc. now owns 144,294 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,792,000 after buying an additional 124,294 shares during the period. 97.92% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

PROG Company Profile

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.