Bank of Nova Scotia Cuts Stake in The Progressive Corporation $PGR

Bank of Nova Scotia lessened its holdings in shares of The Progressive Corporation (NYSE:PGR) by 69.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 389,312 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 878,084 shares during the quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia owned about 0.07% of Progressive worth $77,180,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Bogart Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Progressive by 235.1% in the first quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 124 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Bard Associates Inc. bought a new stake in Progressive in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Progressive by 700.0% in the 1st quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 144 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 126 shares during the last quarter. IFC & Insurance Marketing Inc. purchased a new stake in Progressive in the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Entrust Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Progressive during the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. 85.34% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Progressive Trading Up 1.2%

Shares of NYSE PGR opened at $207.06 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $209.60 and its two-hundred day moving average is $205.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.32 and a quick ratio of 0.27. The Progressive Corporation has a 1-year low of $189.20 and a 1-year high of $254.93. The stock has a market capitalization of $120.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.38, a PEG ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.26.

Progressive Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 2nd were given a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 2nd. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.2%. Progressive’s payout ratio is currently 2.01%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PGR has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Progressive from $205.00 to $198.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and set a $250.00 price target on shares of Progressive in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Progressive from $220.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Progressive from $205.00 to $190.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. Finally, William Blair reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Progressive in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Progressive currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $235.05.

Insider Activity at Progressive

In other Progressive news, Director Jeffrey D. Kelly sold 7,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $216.33, for a total transaction of $1,514,310.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 22,546 shares in the company, valued at $4,877,376.18. The trade was a 23.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider John Jo Murphy sold 5,916 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total transaction of $1,183,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 41,290 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,258,000. This represents a 12.53% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 15,230 shares of company stock worth $3,165,817. Company insiders own 0.32% of the company’s stock.

About Progressive

Progressive Corporation is a large U.S.-based property and casualty insurer that primarily underwrites personal auto insurance along with a broad suite of related products. Its offerings include coverage for private passenger automobiles, commercial auto fleets, motorcycles, boats and recreational vehicles, as well as homeowners, renters, umbrella and other specialty P&C products. Progressive also provides claims handling, risk management and related services to individual and commercial policyholders.

The company distributes its products through a mix of direct channels—online and by phone—and an extensive independent agent network.