Merit Financial Group LLC Boosts Stake in The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR)

Merit Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR - Free Report) by 51.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 9,100 shares of the insurance provider's stock after acquiring an additional 3,073 shares during the quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC's holdings in Progressive were worth $2,180,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Progressive by 20.9% in the third quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 237 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $60,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC lifted its position in shares of Progressive by 16.5% during the 3rd quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 296 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $76,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Castleview Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Progressive by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. Castleview Partners LLC now owns 1,712 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $434,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Washington Trust Bank raised its stake in Progressive by 4.6% during the 3rd quarter. Washington Trust Bank now owns 1,024 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $260,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sunbelt Securities Inc. lifted its position in Progressive by 21.3% in the second quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 262 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $54,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. 85.34% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Progressive Stock Performance

Shares of PGR stock traded down $1.75 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $243.79. 1,967,879 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,000,825. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.30 and a quick ratio of 0.30. The Progressive Co. has a 1 year low of $166.92 and a 1 year high of $270.62. The company has a market cap of $142.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 0.41. The company's 50 day moving average is $250.18 and its two-hundred day moving average is $242.71.

Progressive Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced 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 currently 2.91%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Progressive news, insider Andrew J. Quigg sold 681 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, January 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $242.10, for a total transaction of $164,870.10. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 33,612 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,137,465.20. The trade was a 1.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO John P. Sauerland sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, November 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $268.09, for a total value of $2,680,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 292,958 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $78,539,110.22. This represents a 3.30 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 29,938 shares of company stock worth $7,473,490. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have issued reports on PGR. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on Progressive from $295.00 to $294.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. StockNews.com upgraded Progressive from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Progressive from $251.00 to $256.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. HSBC lowered shares of Progressive from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $267.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of Progressive from $257.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $275.24.

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.