The Progressive Corporation (NYSE:PGR) Given Average Recommendation of “Hold” by Analysts

The Progressive Corporation (NYSE:PGR) has earned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the twenty-two brokerages that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, twelve have given a hold recommendation and seven have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $251.2941.

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Progressive from $214.00 to $205.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Mizuho set a $240.00 target price on shares of Progressive in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Progressive in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Zacks Research cut shares of Progressive from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Monday, January 26th. Finally, Raymond James Financial cut their target price on Progressive from $305.00 to $265.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 17th.

Insider Activity 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 shares were sold at an average price of $228.29, for a total value of $307,050.05. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 27,698 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,323,176.42. This trade represents a 4.63% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CIO Jonathan S. Bauer sold 3,105 shares of Progressive stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.35, for a total transaction of $634,506.75. Following the sale, the executive directly owned 26,249 shares in the company, valued at $5,363,983.15. This trade represents a 10.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 13,788 shares of company stock worth $3,018,961 over the last three months. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of PGR. Brighton Jones LLC increased its holdings in Progressive by 15.6% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 3,392 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $813,000 after purchasing an additional 457 shares in the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Progressive during the fourth quarter worth about $269,000. Bison Wealth LLC increased its stake in shares of Progressive by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 2,568 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $615,000 after buying an additional 80 shares during the period. DAVENPORT & Co LLC raised its holdings in Progressive by 13.1% in the 2nd quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 6,476 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,728,000 after buying an additional 748 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sax Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Progressive during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $267,000. 85.34% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Progressive Stock Performance

NYSE:PGR opened at $207.61 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $121.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.79, a PEG ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 0.32. Progressive has a fifty-two week low of $197.92 and a fifty-two week high of $292.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a current ratio of 0.38. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $217.72 and a 200-day moving average price of $229.76.

Progressive Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 8th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 2nd were given a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 2nd. Progressive’s payout ratio is currently 2.08%.

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.