SG Americas Securities LLC Buys 9,680 Shares of The Progressive Corporation $PGR

SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its stake in The Progressive Corporation (NYSE:PGR) by 1.9% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 532,516 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after buying an additional 9,680 shares during the period. Progressive comprises approximately 0.4% of SG Americas Securities LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest position. SG Americas Securities LLC’s holdings in Progressive were worth $131,505,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. New York Life Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Progressive by 1.4% in the 2nd quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC now owns 87,760 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $23,420,000 after buying an additional 1,192 shares in the last quarter. Baron Silver Stevens Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Progressive during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $306,000. Mather Group LLC. increased its stake in Progressive by 40.6% in the third quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 16,840 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $4,159,000 after acquiring an additional 4,865 shares during the last quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC increased its stake in Progressive by 91.7% in the third quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC now owns 11,710 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $2,892,000 after acquiring an additional 5,600 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wakefield Asset Management LLLP raised its position in Progressive by 199.0% during the second quarter. Wakefield Asset Management LLLP now owns 9,411 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $2,511,000 after purchasing an additional 6,263 shares in the last quarter. 85.34% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Progressive Stock Performance

Shares of PGR stock opened at $209.33 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $122.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.48, a PEG ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a current ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $222.95 and its 200-day moving average price is $236.69. The Progressive Corporation has a 12 month low of $199.90 and a 12 month high of $292.99.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 15th. The insurance provider reported $4.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.04 by ($0.59). Progressive had a net margin of 12.57% and a return on equity of 33.88%. The firm had revenue of $21.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.64 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.58 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that The Progressive Corporation will post 14.68 EPS for the current year.

Progressive Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 2nd. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.2%. Progressive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 2.19%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on PGR. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $227.00 target price on Progressive in a report on Wednesday. Wall Street Zen downgraded Progressive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, September 21st. Barclays raised Progressive from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday. Morgan Stanley reissued an “underweight” rating on shares of Progressive in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Progressive in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $260.27.

Insider Buying and Selling at Progressive

In related news, insider Steven Broz sold 1,345 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $228.29, for a total transaction of $307,050.05. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 27,698 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,323,176.42. This trade represents a 4.63% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO John P. Sauerland sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $228.48, for a total value of $1,142,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 223,024 shares in the company, valued at $50,956,523.52. This trade represents a 2.19% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 9,034 shares of company stock valued at $2,047,481 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Progressive Profile

Progressive Corporation is a large U.S.-based property and casualty insurer that primarily underwrites personal auto insurance along with a broad suite of related products. Its offerings include coverage for private passenger automobiles, commercial auto fleets, motorcycles, boats and recreational vehicles, as well as homeowners, renters, umbrella and other specialty P&C products. Progressive also provides claims handling, risk management and related services to individual and commercial policyholders.

The company distributes its products through a mix of direct channels—online and by phone—and an extensive independent agent network.