Cetera Investment Advisers Sells 5,109 Shares of The Progressive Corporation $PGR

Cetera Investment Advisers lowered its stake in The Progressive Corporation (NYSE:PGR) by 3.8% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 129,027 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 5,109 shares during the quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers’ holdings in Progressive were worth $25,578,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in PGR. Bogart Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in Progressive by 235.1% in the first quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 124 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Bard Associates Inc. bought a new position in shares of Progressive during the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Progressive by 700.0% in the 1st quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 144 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares during the last quarter. IFC & Insurance Marketing Inc. bought a new position in Progressive in the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Entrust Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Progressive during the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.34% of the company’s stock.

Progressive Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE PGR opened at $213.85 on Monday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $209.88 and its 200-day moving average price is $205.87. The Progressive Corporation has a 52-week low of $189.20 and a 52-week high of $254.93. The company has a market cap of $124.96 billion, a PE ratio of 10.72, a PEG ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 0.26. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24.

Progressive Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 2nd were issued a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 2nd. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.2%. Progressive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 2.01%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on PGR. Mizuho lifted their target price on shares of Progressive from $217.00 to $243.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on shares of Progressive from $220.00 to $205.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 16th. William Blair restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Progressive in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Progressive from $205.00 to $198.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, Evercore set a $240.00 target price on Progressive in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $236.11.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Jeffrey D. Kelly sold 7,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $216.33, for a total value of $1,514,310.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 22,546 shares in the company, valued at $4,877,376.18. This trade represents a 23.69% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Steven Broz sold 1,157 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.76, for a total value of $236,907.32. Following the sale, the insider owned 27,511 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,633,152.36. This trade represents a 4.04% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders sold 15,230 shares of company stock valued at $3,165,817. Company insiders own 0.32% of the company’s stock.

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.