Gotham Asset Management LLC Has $11.20 Million Stake in The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR)

Gotham Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) by 124.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 46,759 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 25,919 shares during the quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Progressive were worth $11,204,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Webster Bank N. A. acquired a new stake in Progressive during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Hager Investment Management Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Progressive during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Progressive by 54.7% during the 4th quarter. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 116 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the period. Valley National Advisers Inc. grew its position in shares of Progressive by 3,000.0% during the 4th quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 124 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 120 shares during the period. Finally, Atala Financial Inc bought a new stake in shares of Progressive in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. 85.34% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently issued reports on PGR shares. StockNews.com lowered shares of Progressive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, April 4th. Roth Mkm upped their price objective on shares of Progressive from $290.00 to $315.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on shares of Progressive from $327.00 to $319.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Barclays boosted their target price on Progressive from $285.00 to $297.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Progressive from $267.00 to $287.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $287.65.

Progressive Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of Progressive stock opened at $284.33 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $275.16 and a 200 day simple moving average of $260.46. The Progressive Co. has a 12-month low of $201.34 and a 12-month high of $292.99. The company has a market capitalization of $166.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.40.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 16th. The insurance provider reported $4.65 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.28 by $0.37. Progressive had a net margin of 11.25% and a return on equity of 33.79%. The company had revenue of $22.21 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.87 billion. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate 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 was paid on Friday, April 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 3rd were issued a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.14%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 3rd. Progressive’s dividend payout ratio is presently 2.70%.

Insider Activity at Progressive

In other news, CFO John P. Sauerland sold 10,000 shares of Progressive stock in a transaction on Monday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $268.59, for a total transaction of $2,685,900.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 248,024 shares in the company, valued at $66,616,766.16. The trade was a 3.88% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Carl G. Joyce sold 360 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $276.17, for a total transaction of $99,421.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 655 shares in the company, valued at $180,891.35. This trade represents a 35.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 39,894 shares of company stock valued at $11,020,097. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.