NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC Grows Stake in The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR)

NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC grew its holdings in The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) by 6.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 14,800 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 865 shares during the quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC’s holdings in Progressive were worth $4,189,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Progressive during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,843,045,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of Progressive by 39,285.0% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,046,037 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $862,059,000 after purchasing an additional 3,038,303 shares during the last quarter. GQG Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Progressive by 67.6% in the 4th quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 5,171,501 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,239,143,000 after purchasing an additional 2,085,833 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Progressive in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $408,416,000. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors lifted its holdings in shares of Progressive by 34.3% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 6,058,187 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,451,602,000 after buying an additional 1,547,677 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.34% of the company’s stock.

Progressive Stock Performance

PGR opened at $267.58 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $156.86 billion, a PE ratio of 18.58, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $276.07 and a 200-day simple moving average of $264.55. The Progressive Co. has a fifty-two week low of $203.39 and a fifty-two week high of $292.99.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 16th. The insurance provider reported $4.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.28 by $0.37. The business had revenue of $22.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.87 billion. Progressive had a return on equity of 33.79% and a net margin of 11.25%. As a group, equities analysts predict that The Progressive Co. will post 14.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Progressive news, CAO Carl G. Joyce sold 360 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $276.17, for a total value of $99,421.20. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 655 shares in the company, valued at $180,891.35. This represents a 35.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Devin C. Johnson sold 400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.04, for a total value of $110,016.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 8,370 shares in the company, valued at $2,302,084.80. This trade represents a 4.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 37,755 shares of company stock valued at $10,367,074. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PGR has been the subject of several research reports. Roth Mkm lifted their price objective on Progressive from $290.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Wall Street Zen cut Progressive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Barclays boosted their price target on Progressive from $285.00 to $297.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, April 11th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Progressive from $324.00 to $328.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Progressive from $282.00 to $288.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $288.59.

Progressive 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.