Empire Life Investments Inc. Cuts Position in The Progressive Corporation (NYSE:PGR)

Key Points

• Empire Life Investments Inc. reduced its stake in The Progressive Corporation by 19.9%, selling 6,216 shares and owning a total of 24,963 shares valued at $7,065,000.
• Several institutional investors have also adjusted their positions, with some boosting their holdings in Progressive during the first quarter.
• Progressive's stock has seen multiple analyst rating adjustments, with a mixed consensus; currently rated as a "Moderate Buy" with a target price of $286.88.

Empire Life Investments Inc. cut its position in shares of The Progressive Corporation (NYSE:PGR - Free Report) by 19.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 24,963 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 6,216 shares during the period. Empire Life Investments Inc.'s holdings in Progressive were worth $7,065,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in PGR. Highline Wealth Partners LLC increased 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 valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC grew its holdings 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 worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Progressive during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. HWG Holdings LP bought a new position in shares of Progressive during the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Garde Capital Inc. acquired a new position in Progressive in the first quarter worth $33,000. 85.34% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Progressive Price Performance

PGR stock traded up $4.53 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $247.47. 2,620,778 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,698,092. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 0.31 and a quick ratio of 0.29. The Progressive Corporation has a twelve month low of $213.47 and a twelve month high of $292.99. The company has a market capitalization of $145.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.94, a P/E/G ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 0.33. The company has a 50-day moving average of $258.78 and a two-hundred day moving average of $266.15.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 16th. The insurance provider reported $4.88 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.43 by $0.45. Progressive had a return on equity of 35.37% and a net margin of 12.66%. The company had revenue of $20.08 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.39 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.48 EPS. Progressive's revenue for the quarter was up 12.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that The Progressive Corporation will post 14.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Progressive Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 11th. Investors of record on Friday, July 4th were given a $0.10 dividend. This represents a yield of 15.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 3rd. Progressive's payout ratio is presently 2.25%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on the company. Wall Street Zen lowered Progressive from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Evercore ISI lowered Progressive from an "outperform" rating to an "in-line" rating and set a $275.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on Progressive from $290.00 to $268.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Progressive from $328.00 to $333.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, June 20th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their target price on Progressive from $280.00 to $268.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $286.88.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider John Jo Murphy sold 2,218 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.24, for a total value of $552,814.32. Following the completion of 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Susan Patricia Griffith sold 30,660 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $242.12, for a total value of $7,423,399.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 506,945 shares of the company's stock, valued at $122,741,523.40. The trade was a 5.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 104,250 shares of company stock worth $26,332,348 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.

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.