Prudential Financial Inc. Has $137.68 Million Stock Position in The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR)

Prudential Financial Inc. lowered its stake in shares of The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR - Free Report) by 42.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 574,608 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 428,156 shares during the quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. owned approximately 0.10% of Progressive worth $137,682,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Webster Bank N. A. bought a new position in shares of Progressive during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Hager Investment Management Services LLC acquired a new position in Progressive during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Progressive by 54.7% in the 4th quarter. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 116 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. increased its stake in shares of Progressive by 3,000.0% in the fourth 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 period. Finally, Atala Financial Inc bought a new stake in shares of Progressive during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. 85.34% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently commented on PGR shares. StockNews.com upgraded Progressive from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on Progressive from $273.00 to $267.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 16th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Progressive from $300.00 to $307.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Progressive from $313.00 to $317.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, Bank of America reduced their price target on shares of Progressive from $318.00 to $300.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Progressive currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $281.06.

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Insider Activity at Progressive

In related news, CAO Mariann Wojtkun Marshall sold 191 shares of Progressive stock in a transaction on Friday, January 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $242.10, for a total transaction of $46,241.10. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,982 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $964,042.20. This trade represents a 4.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Carl G. Joyce sold 360 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $276.17, for a total value of $99,421.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 655 shares in the company, valued at approximately $180,891.35. The trade was a 35.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 65,855 shares of company stock valued at $16,767,455. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.

Progressive Trading Up 0.2 %

NYSE PGR traded up $0.57 on Tuesday, hitting $274.57. 2,911,344 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,427,473. The Progressive Co. has a twelve month low of $201.34 and a twelve month high of $292.99. The company's 50 day moving average price is $263.42 and its 200-day moving average price is $255.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $160.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.35. 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 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.44 by $0.64. Progressive had a net margin of 11.25% and a return on equity of 33.79%. Analysts predict that The Progressive Co. will post 14.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Progressive Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be given a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 3rd. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.15%. 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.