2,991 Shares in The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) Acquired by Gradient Investments LLC

Gradient Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 2,991 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $717,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of PGR. Davis Capital Management acquired a new stake in shares of Progressive during the third quarter valued at $25,000. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. lifted its holdings in Progressive by 114.1% in the 3rd quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. now owns 137 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Kimelman & Baird LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Progressive during the 2nd quarter worth about $36,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Progressive during the third quarter worth about $49,000. Finally, Friedenthal Financial acquired a new position in shares of Progressive in the third quarter valued at approximately $49,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.34% of the company’s stock.

Progressive Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:PGR opened at $238.58 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $139.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.34, a PEG ratio of 0.62 and a beta of 0.41. The Progressive Co. has a one year low of $175.50 and a one year high of $270.62. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $248.27 and its 200 day simple moving average is $243.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.30.

Progressive Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 9th were given a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 10th. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.17%. Progressive’s payout ratio is currently 2.91%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have commented on PGR shares. Hsbc Global Res cut shares of Progressive from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on Progressive from $295.00 to $294.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. HSBC lowered Progressive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $267.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Raymond James raised shares of Progressive from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $305.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Progressive from $299.00 to $302.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $274.65.

Insider Activity at Progressive

In other news, CEO Susan Patricia Griffith sold 9,066 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $242.10, for a total transaction of $2,194,878.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 473,736 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $114,691,485.60. This trade represents a 1.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Andrew J. Quigg sold 681 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $242.10, for a total transaction of $164,870.10. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 33,612 shares in the company, valued at $8,137,465.20. This represents a 1.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 42,506 shares of company stock valued at $10,531,159. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Progressive Company Profile

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.