Capital Research Global Investors Decreases Position in The Progressive Corporation $PGR

Capital Research Global Investors cut its stake in The Progressive Corporation (NYSE:PGR) by 0.2% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 11,144,028 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 23,912 shares during the quarter. Capital Research Global Investors’ holdings in Progressive were worth $2,537,738,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Progressive by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 55,261,140 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $12,584,067,000 after purchasing an additional 593,612 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its stake in Progressive by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 25,808,762 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $6,373,474,000 after purchasing an additional 78,374 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors lifted its stake in Progressive by 8.9% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 14,921,724 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $3,398,123,000 after purchasing an additional 1,217,527 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Progressive in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,836,094,000. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its stake in Progressive by 19.8% in the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 4,227,046 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $962,583,000 after purchasing an additional 697,439 shares in the last quarter. 85.34% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Carl G. Joyce sold 270 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.50, for a total transaction of $55,755.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 558 shares in the company, valued at $115,227. This trade represents a 32.61% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.32% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Progressive Stock Up 4.6%

Shares of NYSE PGR opened at $204.27 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $198.89 and a 200-day simple moving average of $208.87. The company has a market capitalization of $119.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.39, a P/E/G ratio of 5.91 and a beta of 0.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 0.27 and a quick ratio of 0.27. The Progressive Corporation has a 1 year low of $189.20 and a 1 year high of $283.95.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 15th. The insurance provider reported $4.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.67 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $22.19 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $23.51 billion. Progressive had a net margin of 12.92% and a return on equity of 33.47%. The business’s revenue was up 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $4.37 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that The Progressive Corporation will post 16.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Progressive Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 2nd. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.2%. Progressive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 2.03%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on PGR shares. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Progressive from $218.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, March 23rd. Mizuho decreased their target price on shares of Progressive from $235.00 to $223.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 20th. Argus raised shares of Progressive to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Roth Mkm set a $235.00 target price on shares of Progressive in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $220.00 target price on shares of Progressive in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Progressive has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $238.11.

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.