The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) Position Lifted by Nicolet Advisory Services LLC

Nicolet Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) by 9.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,913 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 423 shares during the quarter. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Progressive were worth $1,158,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of PGR. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Progressive during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,843,045,000. GQG Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Progressive by 67.6% during 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 acquiring an additional 2,085,833 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Progressive during the fourth quarter worth $408,416,000. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Progressive by 13.2% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 14,425,792 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $3,652,235,000 after purchasing an additional 1,682,213 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Progressive by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 53,400,366 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $12,795,262,000 after purchasing an additional 583,376 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 85.34% of the company’s stock.

Progressive Stock Down 1.0 %

PGR stock opened at $281.38 on Thursday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $267.83 and its two-hundred day moving average is $256.52. The company has a current ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The company has a market capitalization of $164.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.38. The Progressive Co. has a 52 week low of $201.34 and a 52 week high of $292.99.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The insurance provider reported $4.08 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.44 by $0.64. Progressive had a net margin of 11.25% and a return on equity of 33.79%. On average, analysts forecast that The Progressive Co. 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, April 11th. Investors 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 dividend payout ratio is currently 2.78%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PGR has been the subject of several research reports. Hsbc Global Res lowered shares of Progressive from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Roth Mkm lifted their target price on Progressive from $290.00 to $315.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. StockNews.com upgraded Progressive from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 22nd. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Progressive from $275.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on Progressive from $273.00 to $267.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, Progressive has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $281.06.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Patrick K. Callahan sold 4,669 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $279.70, for a total transaction of $1,305,919.30. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 15,191 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,248,922.70. This trade represents a 23.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Susan Patricia Griffith sold 9,066 shares of the firm’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 $2,194,878.60. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 473,736 shares in the company, valued at $114,691,485.60. This represents a 1.88 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 66,255 shares of company stock worth $17,250,271 over the last 90 days. 0.33% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.