Progressive (NYSE:PGR) Reaches New 12-Month High at $243.24

The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) shares hit a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $243.24 and last traded at $243.24, with a volume of 878 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $241.25.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on PGR shares. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of Progressive from $250.00 to $252.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 15th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Progressive from $256.00 to $255.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, June 10th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on shares of Progressive from $239.00 to $237.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Hsbc Global Res raised Progressive from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 12th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised Progressive from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $230.00 to $262.00 in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Progressive currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $234.41.

Progressive Stock Up 1.2 %

The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $217.48 and its 200 day simple moving average is $208.55. The company has a market capitalization of $142.97 billion, a PE ratio of 24.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a quick ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 16th. The insurance provider reported $2.65 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.04 by $0.61. Progressive had a net margin of 10.17% and a return on equity of 33.01%. The business had revenue of $17.90 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.54 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.57 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 21.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that The Progressive Co. will post 12.16 EPS for the current year.

Progressive Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.16%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 3rd. Progressive’s payout ratio is 4.09%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Mariann Wojtkun Marshall sold 650 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $208.11, for a total transaction of $135,271.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,981 shares in the company, valued at $828,485.91. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Progressive news, CFO John P. Sauerland sold 12,457 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $204.43, for a total value of $2,546,584.51. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 312,958 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $63,978,003.94. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Mariann Wojtkun Marshall sold 650 shares of Progressive stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $208.11, for a total value of $135,271.50. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,981 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $828,485.91. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 116,441 shares of company stock valued at $25,111,350. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Progressive

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PGR. Sunbelt Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in Progressive by 21.3% in the second quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 262 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $54,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. lifted its position in shares of Progressive by 11.8% in the second quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 455 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $95,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Progressive by 10.4% during the 2nd quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 509 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $106,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Graypoint LLC increased its holdings in shares of Progressive by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. Graypoint LLC now owns 4,202 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $873,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Finally, City State Bank raised its stake in shares of Progressive by 8.2% in the 2nd quarter. City State Bank now owns 661 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $137,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. 85.34% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.