State of Alaska Department of Revenue Lowers Position in The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR)

State of Alaska Department of Revenue trimmed its stake in The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) by 1.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 66,844 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 1,190 shares during the period. State of Alaska Department of Revenue’s holdings in Progressive were worth $16,016,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of PGR. Webster Bank N. A. bought a new stake in shares of Progressive during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Hager Investment Management Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Progressive in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Valley National Advisers Inc. increased its position in shares of Progressive by 3,000.0% during the 4th quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 124 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Progressive by 114.1% during the 3rd quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. now owns 137 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Independence Bank of Kentucky lifted its position in Progressive by 1,650.0% in the 4th quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky now owns 175 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 165 shares during the last quarter. 85.34% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Progressive

In other Progressive news, CEO Susan Patricia Griffith sold 11,021 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $243.29, for a total transaction of $2,681,299.09. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 473,736 shares in the company, valued at approximately $115,255,231.44. This trade represents a 2.27 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO John P. Sauerland sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $238.66, for a total transaction of $2,386,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 282,958 shares in the company, valued at approximately $67,530,756.28. This represents a 3.41 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 56,361 shares of company stock valued at $13,983,575. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on PGR. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Progressive from $277.00 to $261.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of Progressive from $197.00 to $237.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Progressive from $331.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 18th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Progressive from $300.00 to $307.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Raymond James raised Progressive from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $305.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Thursday, December 26th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Progressive has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $275.71.

Progressive Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE:PGR opened at $248.99 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $145.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.29, a P/E/G ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 0.42. 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 stock has a 50 day moving average price of $246.28 and a 200-day moving average price of $245.29. The Progressive Co. has a 52-week low of $179.90 and a 52-week high of $270.62.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The insurance provider reported $4.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that The Progressive Co. will post 14.4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Progressive Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 9th were issued a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.16%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 10th. Progressive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 2.78%.

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.