The Progressive Corporation $PGR is BankPlus Trust Department’s 6th Largest Position

BankPlus Trust Department lifted its stake in shares of The Progressive Corporation (NYSE:PGR) by 16.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 28,963 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after buying an additional 4,113 shares during the period. Progressive makes up approximately 1.9% of BankPlus Trust Department’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 6th biggest holding. BankPlus Trust Department’s holdings in Progressive were worth $7,152,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in PGR. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Progressive by 0.9% during the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 54,516,288 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $14,548,217,000 after acquiring an additional 493,332 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Progressive by 2.0% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 15,513,188 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $4,128,055,000 after purchasing an additional 301,371 shares during the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. lifted its holdings in shares of Progressive by 32.8% during the second quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 10,972,574 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,928,141,000 after purchasing an additional 2,709,417 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Progressive during the second quarter worth about $2,156,939,000. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its position in Progressive by 6.6% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 6,380,134 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,805,642,000 after buying an additional 396,567 shares during the last quarter. 85.34% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Progressive Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of NYSE:PGR opened at $227.15 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $222.51 and its 200-day moving average price is $239.15. The Progressive Corporation has a 1 year low of $199.90 and a 1 year high of $292.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $133.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 0.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 0.29 and a quick ratio of 0.29.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 15th. The insurance provider reported $4.45 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.04 by ($0.59). The company had revenue of $21.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $21.64 billion. Progressive had a return on equity of 33.88% and a net margin of 12.57%.During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.58 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that The Progressive Corporation will post 14.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Progressive Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 8th. Investors of record on Friday, January 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 2nd. Progressive’s dividend payout ratio is 2.19%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on PGR shares. Morgan Stanley reissued an “underweight” rating on shares of Progressive in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Progressive in a research note on Monday, December 22nd. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Progressive from $301.38 to $300.60 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Progressive from $242.00 to $247.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 23rd. Finally, Zacks Research lowered Progressive from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, October 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $264.98.

Insider Transactions at Progressive

In other news, insider Steven Broz sold 1,345 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $228.29, for a total value of $307,050.05. Following the transaction, the insider owned 27,698 shares in the company, valued at $6,323,176.42. This trade represents a 4.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO John P. Sauerland sold 5,000 shares of Progressive stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $228.48, for a total value of $1,142,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 223,024 shares in the company, valued at $50,956,523.52. This represents a 2.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 9,034 shares of company stock worth $2,047,481 over the last ninety days. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Progressive Company Profile

Progressive Corporation is a large U.S.-based property and casualty insurer that primarily underwrites personal auto insurance along with a broad suite of related products. Its offerings include coverage for private passenger automobiles, commercial auto fleets, motorcycles, boats and recreational vehicles, as well as homeowners, renters, umbrella and other specialty P&C products. Progressive also provides claims handling, risk management and related services to individual and commercial policyholders.

The company distributes its products through a mix of direct channels—online and by phone—and an extensive independent agent network.