The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) Shares Sold by Alliancebernstein L.P.

Alliancebernstein L.P. decreased its position in shares of The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) by 4.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,171,329 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 329,907 shares during the period. Progressive accounts for approximately 0.6% of Alliancebernstein L.P.’s portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest holding. Alliancebernstein L.P.’s holdings in Progressive were worth $1,718,322,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Progressive by 54.7% in the 4th quarter. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 116 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC lifted its position in Progressive by 16.5% during the third quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 296 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $76,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the period. Washington Trust Bank lifted its position in Progressive by 4.1% during the fourth quarter. Washington Trust Bank now owns 1,066 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $255,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the period. SYM FINANCIAL Corp lifted its position in Progressive by 2.8% during the fourth quarter. SYM FINANCIAL Corp now owns 1,602 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $384,000 after buying an additional 44 shares during the period. Finally, Monument Capital Management grew its holdings in Progressive by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Monument Capital Management now owns 13,762 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $3,298,000 after buying an additional 44 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.34% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Andrew J. Quigg sold 681 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $242.10, for a total value of $164,870.10. Following the sale, the insider now owns 33,612 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,137,465.20. This trade represents a 1.99 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO John P. Sauerland sold 1,542 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $282.66, for a total transaction of $435,861.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 268,024 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $75,759,663.84. This trade represents a 0.57 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 56,255 shares of company stock valued at $14,490,871. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Progressive Stock Performance

Shares of PGR opened at $279.13 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $163.64 billion, a PE ratio of 19.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.35. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $265.32 and its 200 day moving average price is $255.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.31 and a quick ratio of 0.30. The Progressive Co. has a 12-month low of $201.34 and a 12-month high of $292.99.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The insurance provider reported $4.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.44 by $0.64. Progressive had a net margin of 11.25% and a return on equity of 33.79%. Equities research analysts forecast that The Progressive Co. will post 14.68 EPS for the current year.

Progressive Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be paid a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 3rd. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.14%. Progressive’s payout ratio is currently 2.78%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently commented on PGR. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Progressive from $300.00 to $307.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of Progressive from $294.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. 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. Bank of America reduced their target price on Progressive from $318.00 to $300.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on Progressive from $273.00 to $267.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $281.06.

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.