Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC Has $71.73 Million Stock Position in The Progressive Corporation $PGR

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its position in The Progressive Corporation (NYSE:PGR) by 54.5% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 274,118 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 96,741 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Progressive were worth $71,726,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Highline Wealth Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Progressive by 114.0% in the first quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 92 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the period. TruNorth Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Progressive by 210.0% in the 1st quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 93 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the period. HWG Holdings LP acquired a new position in shares of Progressive in the 1st quarter valued at about $28,000. Garde Capital Inc. acquired a new position in Progressive in the first quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Ransom Advisory Ltd acquired a new position in Progressive in the first quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.34% of the company’s stock.

Progressive Trading Down 0.7%

PGR opened at $241.93 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 0.31 and a quick ratio of 0.31. The Progressive Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $228.54 and a fifty-two week high of $292.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $141.82 billion, a PE ratio of 13.63, a P/E/G ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.32. The company’s 50-day moving average is $245.88 and its 200 day moving average is $263.75.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 16th. The insurance provider reported $4.88 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.43 by $0.45. The company had revenue of $20.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.39 billion. Progressive had a net margin of 12.66% and a return on equity of 35.37%. The firm’s revenue was up 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.48 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that The Progressive Corporation will post 14.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Progressive Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 2nd will be given a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 2nd. Progressive’s dividend payout ratio is presently 2.25%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have issued reports on PGR shares. Wall Street Zen raised Progressive from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, September 13th. Citigroup reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Progressive in a research report on Friday, August 29th. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Progressive in a report on Monday. They set a “peer perform” rating on the stock. BMO Capital Markets set a $252.00 price objective on shares of Progressive in a report on Thursday. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald raised Progressive to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $279.44.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Lori A. Niederst sold 8,063 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.18, for a total value of $2,017,201.34. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 39,040 shares in the company, valued at $9,767,027.20. This represents a 17.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Patrick K. Callahan sold 6,232 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.96, for a total transaction of $1,557,750.72. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 21,612 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,402,135.52. This represents a 22.38% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 130,062 shares of company stock worth $32,217,635 in the last three months. 0.34% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Progressive

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.