The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) Shares Purchased by Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC

Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR - Free Report) by 355.5% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 8,654 shares of the insurance provider's stock after purchasing an additional 6,754 shares during the quarter. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC's holdings in Progressive were worth $2,196,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of PGR. Davis Capital Management purchased a new stake in shares of Progressive during the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. WR Wealth Planners LLC grew its position in Progressive by 119.6% in the second quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 123 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Hilltop National Bank raised its stake in shares of Progressive by 126.0% during the second quarter. Hilltop National Bank now owns 165 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares during the period. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. lifted its position in shares of Progressive by 114.1% during the third quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. now owns 137 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Finally, LRI Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Progressive in the first quarter valued at $36,000. 85.34% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Progressive

In other news, insider Steven Broz sold 2,981 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, October 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $251.15, for a total value of $748,678.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 26,353 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,618,555.95. This represents a 10.16 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Susan Patricia Griffith sold 43,370 shares of Progressive stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $252.20, for a total transaction of $10,937,914.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 473,735 shares in the company, valued at approximately $119,475,967. This represents a 8.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 65,331 shares of company stock worth $16,415,812 in the last three months. 0.34% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on PGR shares. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of Progressive from $257.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Progressive from $281.00 to $282.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Barclays upped their target price on Progressive from $267.00 to $277.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. HSBC upgraded shares of Progressive from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $253.00 price target for the company in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of Progressive from $280.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $269.56.

Progressive Stock Performance

PGR traded down $1.72 during trading on Friday, reaching $255.78. 3,247,982 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,463,986. The company has a current ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The stock has a market cap of $149.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.86, a PEG ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 0.36. The Progressive Co. has a 52 week low of $149.14 and a 52 week high of $263.85. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $252.08 and a 200 day moving average of $229.48.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 15th. The insurance provider reported $3.58 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.40 by $0.18. Progressive had a net margin of 11.27% and a return on equity of 33.10%. The business had revenue of $19.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $18.95 billion. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that The Progressive Co. will post 13.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.