The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) Shares Sold by Maren Capital LLC

Maren Capital LLC cut its holdings in The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) by 0.7% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 13,450 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 100 shares during the quarter. Progressive accounts for 0.2% of Maren Capital LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 18th largest holding. Maren Capital LLC’s holdings in Progressive were worth $3,223,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Kesler Norman & Wride LLC boosted its stake in Progressive by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Kesler Norman & Wride LLC now owns 3,695 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $885,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Progressive by 54.7% during the 4th quarter. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 116 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the period. LRI Investments LLC lifted its stake in shares of Progressive by 16.5% in the 3rd quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 296 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $76,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Washington Trust Bank raised its holdings in Progressive by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. Washington Trust Bank now owns 1,066 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $255,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the period. Finally, SYM FINANCIAL Corp lifted its position in Progressive by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. SYM FINANCIAL Corp now owns 1,602 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $384,000 after buying an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. 85.34% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Progressive

In other Progressive news, CFO John P. Sauerland sold 1,542 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $282.66, for a total transaction of $435,861.72. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 268,024 shares in the company, valued at approximately $75,759,663.84. This represents a 0.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Carl G. Joyce sold 360 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $276.17, for a total value of $99,421.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 655 shares in the company, valued at $180,891.35. This trade represents a 35.47 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 56,317 shares of company stock worth $14,844,282 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on PGR. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on shares of Progressive from $294.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Progressive from $300.00 to $307.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Progressive from $313.00 to $317.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Raymond James raised Progressive from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $305.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Thursday, December 26th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Progressive from $251.00 to $256.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Progressive currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $280.29.

Progressive Trading Down 10.4 %

Shares of Progressive stock opened at $257.27 on Monday. 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 Progressive Co. has a 1 year low of $201.34 and a 1 year high of $292.99. The company’s fifty day moving average is $269.14 and its two-hundred day moving average is $256.73. The company has a market capitalization of $150.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.87, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.38.

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 the consensus estimate of $3.44 by $0.64. Progressive had a return on equity of 33.79% and a net margin of 11.25%. Analysts forecast that The Progressive Co. will post 14.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Progressive Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be paid a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.16%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 3rd. Progressive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 2.78%.

Progressive 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.