Banco Santander S.A. reduced its stake in shares of The Progressive Corporation (NYSE:PGR - Free Report) by 21.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 86,637 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 23,814 shares during the period. Banco Santander S.A.'s holdings in Progressive were worth $24,519,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in PGR. Highline Wealth Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Progressive by 114.0% during the 1st quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 92 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Progressive by 210.0% during the 1st quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 93 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the last quarter. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Progressive during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. HWG Holdings LP bought a new position in Progressive in the 1st quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Garde Capital Inc. bought a new position in shares of Progressive during the 1st quarter worth $33,000. 85.34% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Progressive Stock Performance
Shares of NYSE:PGR traded up $0.37 during trading on Monday, hitting $241.46. The stock had a trading volume of 2,284,632 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,915,410. The Progressive Corporation has a 12-month low of $208.13 and a 12-month high of $292.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $141.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 0.33. The company has a quick ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $260.21 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $266.33.
Progressive (NYSE:PGR - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 16th. The insurance provider reported $4.88 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.43 by $0.45. The firm had revenue of $20.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.39 billion. Progressive had a return on equity of 35.37% and a net margin of 12.66%. Progressive's revenue for the quarter was up 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.48 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that The Progressive Corporation will post 14.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Progressive Announces Dividend
The firm also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 11th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 4th were issued a $0.10 dividend. This represents a yield of 15.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 3rd. Progressive's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 2.25%.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
A number of research firms have recently issued reports on PGR. Wall Street Zen downgraded Progressive from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, July 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Progressive from $267.00 to $287.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Progressive from $328.00 to $333.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, June 20th. Barclays decreased their price target on Progressive from $297.00 to $287.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 7th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price target on Progressive from $280.00 to $268.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $286.88.
Get Our Latest Stock Report on PGR
Insider Buying and Selling
In other news, insider John Jo Murphy sold 2,218 shares of Progressive stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.24, for a total value of $552,814.32. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 47,942 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,949,064.08. The trade was a 4.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Andrew J. Quigg sold 3,191 shares of Progressive stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.24, for a total value of $795,324.84. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 37,977 shares in the company, valued at $9,465,387.48. This represents a 7.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 104,250 shares of company stock valued at $26,332,348 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.
Progressive Company Profile
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Free Report)
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.
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