Progressive (NYSE:PGR) Cut to Hold at StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Progressive (NYSE:PGR) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday.

PGR has been the topic of a number of other reports. HSBC lowered shares of Progressive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $267.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on Progressive from $294.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on Progressive from $273.00 to $267.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Barclays upped their price target on Progressive from $264.00 to $285.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Progressive from $313.00 to $317.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $280.29.

Progressive Trading Down 10.4 %

Shares of PGR opened at $257.27 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.31. The company has a market cap of $150.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.87, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.38. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $269.14 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $256.74. Progressive has a 52-week low of $201.34 and a 52-week high of $292.99.

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

Progressive Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be given a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.16%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 3rd. Progressive’s dividend payout ratio is currently 2.78%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Progressive news, CAO Mariann Wojtkun Marshall sold 585 shares of Progressive stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $243.29, for a total value of $142,324.65. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,983 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $969,024.07. The trade was a 12.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CAO Carl G. Joyce sold 360 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $276.17, for a total transaction of $99,421.20. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 655 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $180,891.35. This represents a 35.47 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 56,317 shares of company stock valued at $14,844,282. 0.33% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Progressive

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Progressive during the third quarter worth about $49,000. Hilltop Holdings Inc. acquired a new position in Progressive during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $580,000. IHT Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Progressive by 55.3% during the 3rd quarter. IHT Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,740 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,204,000 after acquiring an additional 1,687 shares in the last quarter. Morse Asset Management Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Progressive in the third quarter valued at approximately $55,000. Finally, Quarry LP lifted its position in shares of Progressive by 112.2% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 643 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $163,000 after purchasing an additional 340 shares in the last quarter. 85.34% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.