California State Teachers Retirement System Sells 22,977 Shares of The Progressive Corporation $PGR

California State Teachers Retirement System trimmed its position in The Progressive Corporation (NYSE:PGR) by 2.6% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 862,577 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 22,977 shares during the quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System’s holdings in Progressive were worth $170,997,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Bogart Wealth LLC raised its position in Progressive by 235.1% in the 1st quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 124 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Bard Associates Inc. bought a new stake in Progressive in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in Progressive by 700.0% during the 1st quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 144 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 126 shares during the last quarter. IFC & Insurance Marketing Inc. acquired a new position in Progressive during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Entrust Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Progressive during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. 85.34% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Progressive Trading Up 2.0%

Shares of Progressive stock opened at $219.97 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $128.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.03, a P/E/G ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 0.26. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The Progressive Corporation has a 12-month low of $189.20 and a 12-month high of $254.93. The business’s 50 day moving average is $210.45 and its 200-day moving average is $205.97.

Progressive Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 2nd. Progressive’s payout ratio is presently 2.01%.

Progressive News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Progressive this week:

• Positive Sentiment: The insider transactions were scheduled in advance under Rule 10b5-1 plans, which generally reduces the likelihood that the sales reflect a current negative view of Progressive’s business or outlook.
• Neutral Sentiment: A Zacks analyst blog highlighted PGR alongside Intel and Dell. The item may increase visibility for Progressive, but the available report does not provide a specific new earnings estimate, recommendation, or fundamental catalyst. The Zacks Analyst Blog Highlights INTC, DELL and PGR
• Negative Sentiment: Progressive insiders collectively sold 56,156 shares for approximately $11.9 million. CEO Susan Patricia Griffith sold 37,338 shares, while Karen Bailo, Jonathan S. Bauer and John Jo Murphy sold 8,452, 2,242 and 8,124 shares, respectively. The sales reduced their individual holdings by roughly 6.7% to 20.7%, creating some near-term selling pressure and a potentially cautious signal despite the pre-arranged plans. Progressive CEO insider-sale filing

Analyst Ratings Changes

PGR has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on shares of Progressive from $231.00 to $226.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 16th. HSBC increased their target price on shares of Progressive from $214.00 to $221.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. Evercore set a $240.00 target price on shares of Progressive in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of Progressive from $313.00 to $308.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Progressive from $205.00 to $198.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $236.11.

Insider Activity

In other Progressive news, insider John Jo Murphy sold 8,124 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $212.70, for a total value of $1,727,974.80. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 41,291 shares in the company, valued at $8,782,595.70. This trade represents a 16.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CIO Jonathan S. Bauer sold 2,242 shares of Progressive stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $212.71, for a total transaction of $476,895.82. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive directly owned 26,250 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,583,637.50. This trade represents a 7.87% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders sold 71,386 shares of company stock valued at $15,110,679. 0.32% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Progressive Company 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.