Jefferies Financial Group Raises Progressive (NYSE:PGR) Price Target to $257.00

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) had its price objective hoisted by Jefferies Financial Group from $256.00 to $257.00 in a research report report published on Wednesday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the insurance provider’s stock.

Several other brokerages have also commented on PGR. BMO Capital Markets reissued an outperform rating and set a $235.00 price objective on shares of Progressive in a report on Monday, June 17th. Piper Sandler reissued an overweight rating and set a $240.00 price objective on shares of Progressive in a report on Monday, April 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on Progressive from $161.00 to $216.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Monday, March 25th. HSBC boosted their target price on Progressive from $174.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a hold rating in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded Progressive from a market perform rating to an outperform rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $210.00 to $245.00 in a research report on Wednesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Progressive presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $222.94.

Progressive Stock Down 2.3 %

PGR stock opened at $219.35 on Wednesday. Progressive has a twelve month low of $118.75 and a twelve month high of $229.00. The company has a quick ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The firm has a market capitalization of $128.47 billion, a PE ratio of 22.45, a PEG ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 0.35. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $209.89 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $199.45.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 16th. The insurance provider reported $2.65 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.04 by $0.61. Progressive had a return on equity of 33.01% and a net margin of 10.17%. The company had revenue of $17.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.54 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.57 earnings per share. Progressive’s revenue was up 21.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Progressive will post 12.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Progressive Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 12th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 3rd. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.18%. Progressive’s dividend payout ratio is presently 4.09%.

Insider Activity at Progressive

In related news, CFO John P. Sauerland sold 12,457 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $204.43, for a total transaction of $2,546,584.51. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 312,958 shares in the company, valued at $63,978,003.94. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Philip Bleser sold 2,129 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $219.08, for a total transaction of $466,421.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 974 shares in the company, valued at $213,383.92. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO John P. Sauerland sold 12,457 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $204.43, for a total value of $2,546,584.51. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 312,958 shares in the company, valued at $63,978,003.94. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 35,647 shares of company stock worth $7,417,765 over the last quarter. 0.34% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Progressive

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. grew its stake in Progressive by 2.6% in the second quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. now owns 2,047 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $425,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the period. First Horizon Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Progressive by 12.9% in the 2nd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 2,184 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $454,000 after buying an additional 249 shares in the last quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC increased its holdings in Progressive by 475.8% in the 2nd quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 13,531 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,811,000 after buying an additional 11,181 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Progressive by 14.2% in the 2nd quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 142,798 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $29,661,000 after buying an additional 17,794 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Apollon Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Progressive by 6.6% in the second quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,921 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,476,000 after purchasing an additional 737 shares during the last quarter. 85.34% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Progressive Company 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.