The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) Receives $275.65 Average Price Target from Brokerages

The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) has earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eighteen analysts that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and twelve have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $275.00.

Several research analysts have commented on PGR shares. Hsbc Global Res downgraded Progressive from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of Progressive from $257.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of Progressive from $277.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on shares of Progressive from $280.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on shares of Progressive from $273.00 to $267.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 16th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO John P. Sauerland sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $238.66, for a total transaction of $2,386,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 282,958 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $67,530,756.28. This represents a 3.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Steven Broz sold 2,981 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $251.15, for a total transaction of $748,678.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 26,353 shares in the company, valued at $6,618,555.95. This represents a 10.16 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 32,919 shares of company stock worth $8,222,168 in the last 90 days. 0.34% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Progressive

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PGR. Davis Capital Management bought a new stake in Progressive during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Progressive by 114.1% during the 3rd quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. now owns 137 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Kimelman & Baird LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Progressive in the 2nd quarter worth about $36,000. Sachetta LLC lifted its position in Progressive by 34.0% during the 2nd quarter. Sachetta LLC now owns 209 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares during the period. Finally, Friedenthal Financial bought a new stake in Progressive during the third quarter worth about $49,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.34% of the company’s stock.

Progressive Stock Performance

NYSE PGR opened at $239.55 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $140.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The company’s 50 day moving average is $251.45 and its 200-day moving average is $240.70. Progressive has a 12-month low of $162.35 and a 12-month high of $270.62.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The insurance provider reported $3.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.40 by $0.18. The firm had revenue of $19.43 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.95 billion. Progressive had a return on equity of 33.10% and a net margin of 11.27%. Sell-side analysts predict that Progressive will post 13.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Progressive Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 16th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 9th will be paid a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 10th. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.17%. Progressive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 2.91%.

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.