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

Argent Capital Management LLC lessened its stake in The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) by 1.8% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 249,820 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 4,661 shares during the period. Progressive comprises 1.7% of Argent Capital Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest position. Argent Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Progressive were worth $59,859,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Connective Portfolio Management LLC acquired a new position in Progressive in the 4th quarter worth about $1,371,000. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Progressive by 16.7% in the fourth quarter. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. now owns 489 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $117,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC grew its position in shares of Progressive by 34.5% in the fourth quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 25,364 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $6,077,000 after purchasing an additional 6,503 shares in the last quarter. Kathmere Capital Management LLC grew its position in Progressive by 49.2% in the fourth quarter. Kathmere Capital Management LLC now owns 3,168 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $759,000 after acquiring an additional 1,045 shares during the period. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in Progressive by 2,262.4% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 433,999 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $103,990,000 after acquiring an additional 415,628 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.34% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on Progressive from $257.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Evercore ISI upped their price target on Progressive from $277.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on Progressive from $295.00 to $294.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 10th. TD Cowen upped their price target on Progressive from $197.00 to $237.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on Progressive from $262.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $275.24.

Progressive Stock Up 1.0 %

PGR opened at $242.17 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $251.06 and its 200-day simple moving average is $242.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.30. The Progressive Co. has a one year low of $166.92 and a one year high of $270.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $141.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 0.41.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The insurance provider reported $3.58 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.40 by $0.18. Progressive had a return on equity of 33.10% and a net margin of 11.27%. The business had revenue of $19.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $18.95 billion. Analysts anticipate that The Progressive Co. will post 13.52 EPS for the current year.

Progressive Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 16th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 9th will be given a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.17%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 10th. Progressive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 2.91%.

Insider Activity at Progressive

In other Progressive news, insider Steven Broz sold 2,981 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $251.15, for a total transaction of $748,678.15. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 26,353 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,618,555.95. The trade was a 10.16 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO John P. Sauerland sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $268.09, for a total value of $2,680,900.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 292,958 shares in the company, valued at $78,539,110.22. This trade represents a 3.30 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 32,919 shares of company stock worth $8,222,168 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

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.