The Progressive Corporation (PGR) to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $0.10 on October 9th

The Progressive Corporation (NYSE:PGR) announced a quarterly dividend on Friday, August 7th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 1st will be given a dividend of $0.10 per share by the insurance provider on Friday, October 9th. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 1st.

Progressive has increased its dividend by an average of 0.1%annually over the last three years. Progressive has a payout ratio of 2.5% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect Progressive to earn $16.17 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.40 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 2.5%.

Progressive Stock Up 1.9%

Shares of Progressive stock opened at $209.37 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. Progressive has a 52-week low of $189.20 and a 52-week high of $248.17. The company has a market capitalization of $121.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.50, a P/E/G ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.27. The company has a 50 day moving average of $214.24 and a 200 day moving average of $208.38.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 15th. The insurance provider reported $5.67 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.64 by $1.03. The company had revenue of $23.61 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $19.49 billion. Progressive had a net margin of 12.84% and a return on equity of 32.92%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $5.40 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Progressive will post 17.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. Evercore set a $240.00 target price on Progressive in a report on Friday, July 10th. Morgan Stanley raised Progressive from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $190.00 to $210.00 in a research report on Friday, July 24th. William Blair reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Progressive in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $250.00 target price on shares of Progressive in a research report on Friday, September 18th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $230.00 target price on shares of Progressive in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $234.89.

Progressive Company Profile

Progressive Corporation is an insurance holding company that provides personal and commercial insurance products in the United States. Its primary business is automobile insurance, serving consumers through direct channels, independent agents and other distribution partners.

The company offers coverage for personal vehicles, motorcycles, recreational vehicles, boats and other specialty vehicles. Its personal insurance portfolio also includes homeowners, renters, condominium and other property coverage, while its commercial business provides insurance for commercial vehicles and related risks.