Progressive (NYSE:PGR) Hits New 1-Year Low – Here’s What Happened

The Progressive Corporation (NYSE:PGR)’s share price reached a new 52-week low on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $198.50 and last traded at $201.8630, with a volume of 307853 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $202.37.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PGR has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Progressive from $242.00 to $240.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. HSBC set a $259.00 target price on Progressive and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 17th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Progressive from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, October 10th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on shares of Progressive from $253.00 to $239.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 15th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Progressive in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Progressive presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $259.39.

Progressive Stock Performance

The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $222.63 and its 200 day simple moving average is $233.40. The stock has a market capitalization of $119.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.15, a P/E/G ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a current ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19.

Progressive Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Transactions at Progressive

In other news, insider Steven Broz sold 1,345 shares of Progressive stock in a transaction dated 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 approximately $6,323,176.42. The trade was a 4.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO John P. Sauerland sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 28th. The shares were 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 owned 223,024 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $50,956,523.52. The trade was a 2.19% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 9,034 shares of company stock valued at $2,047,481 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Progressive

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in PGR. Davis Capital Management purchased a new position in shares of Progressive in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Dagco Inc. purchased a new position in Progressive during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. increased its position in Progressive by 106.6% during the third quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. now owns 126 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp bought a new position in Progressive during the second quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Howard Hughes Medical Institute purchased a new stake in shares of Progressive in the second quarter valued at $34,000. 85.34% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Progressive

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.