Insider Selling: The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) CFO Sells 10,000 Shares of Stock

The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR - Get Free Report) CFO John P. Sauerland sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $279.94, for a total transaction of $2,799,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 269,566 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $75,462,306.04. This represents a 3.58 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website.

Progressive Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE:PGR traded up $2.12 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $284.12. 1,573,813 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,582,580. The firm has a market capitalization of $166.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.42. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $250.25 and a 200-day moving average price of $251.23. The Progressive Co. has a 1 year low of $187.32 and a 1 year high of $285.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.31 and a quick ratio of 0.30.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The insurance provider reported $4.08 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. Equities analysts expect that The Progressive Co. will post 14.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Progressive Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 9th were paid a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.14%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 10th. Progressive's dividend payout ratio is presently 2.78%.

Institutional Trading of Progressive

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Weatherly Asset Management L. P. purchased a new position in Progressive during the 3rd quarter valued at about $222,000. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC increased its holdings in Progressive by 17.1% during the third quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 1,308 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $323,000 after buying an additional 191 shares during the period. Cardinal Strategic Wealth Guidance bought a new position in Progressive in the third quarter worth approximately $241,000. BSW Wealth Partners lifted its holdings in Progressive by 75.3% during the third quarter. BSW Wealth Partners now owns 2,067 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $524,000 after buying an additional 888 shares during the period. Finally, TrueWealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Progressive during the 3rd quarter valued at $221,000. Institutional investors own 85.34% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on PGR shares. Hsbc Global Res downgraded shares of Progressive from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. TD Cowen increased their price target on Progressive from $197.00 to $237.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Progressive from $300.00 to $307.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. 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 report on Monday, December 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Progressive from $251.00 to $256.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $277.59.

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.

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