Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC Buys 11,327 Shares of The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR)

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in shares of The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) by 17.3% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 76,709 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after buying an additional 11,327 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Progressive were worth $15,933,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Indiana Trust & Investment Management CO bought a new stake in shares of Progressive during the 1st quarter worth about $32,000. Sachetta LLC bought a new stake in Progressive in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Northwest Bank & Trust Co bought a new stake in Progressive in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Hilltop National Bank boosted its holdings in Progressive by 126.0% in the 2nd quarter. Hilltop National Bank now owns 165 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares during the period. Finally, Register Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Progressive in the 1st quarter valued at about $35,000. Institutional investors own 85.34% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Progressive

In related 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 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 $64,836,041.58. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Progressive news, CEO Susan Patricia Griffith sold 43,371 shares of Progressive stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $214.01, for a total value of $9,281,827.71. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 517,105 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $110,665,641.05. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO John P. Sauerland sold 22,708 shares of Progressive stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $214.01, for a total transaction of $4,859,739.08. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 302,958 shares in the company, valued at approximately $64,836,041.58. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 100,807 shares of company stock valued at $21,412,417 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Progressive Stock Up 4.6 %

NYSE:PGR traded up $10.23 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $232.56. The company had a trading volume of 1,062,782 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,550,235. The firm has a market cap of $136.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.76, a P/E/G ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 0.35. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $212.78 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $205.30. The Progressive Co. has a twelve month low of $124.06 and a twelve month high of $233.39. The company has a quick ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 16th. The insurance provider reported $2.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.04 by $0.61. The firm had revenue of $17.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.54 billion. Progressive had a net margin of 10.17% and a return on equity of 33.01%. The business’s revenue was up 21.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.57 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that The Progressive Co. will post 12.02 earnings per share for the current year.

Progressive Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 3rd. Progressive’s payout ratio is currently 4.09%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have issued reports on the stock. 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. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on shares of Progressive from $239.00 to $237.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Progressive from $256.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of Progressive from $276.00 to $293.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Progressive from $243.00 to $254.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, June 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $227.29.

About Progressive

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.