Everett Harris & Co. CA Has $38.72 Million Stock Position in The Progressive Corporation (NYSE:PGR)

Key Points

• Everett Harris & Co. CA reduced its stake in The Progressive Corporation by 1.3%, selling 1,870 shares and ending up with 136,826 shares valued at approximately $38.7 million.
• Significant increases in holdings were seen from other hedge funds, with GAMMA Investing LLC raising its position by 39,285.0% and now owning over 3 million shares, valued at $862 million.
• Recent analyst reports reflect cautious optimism, with several firms adjusting their price targets downward; however, Progressive still maintains a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with a target price of $286.88.

Everett Harris & Co. CA lowered its holdings in The Progressive Corporation (NYSE:PGR - Free Report) by 1.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 136,826 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 1,870 shares during the period. Everett Harris & Co. CA's holdings in Progressive were worth $38,723,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Highline Wealth Partners LLC increased its stake in Progressive by 114.0% in the 1st quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 92 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the period. TruNorth Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Progressive by 210.0% during the first quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 93 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Progressive during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. HWG Holdings LP purchased a new stake in shares of Progressive during the first quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Garde Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Progressive during the first quarter worth $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.34% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other Progressive news, insider Patrick K. Callahan sold 6,232 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $242.16, for a total transaction of $1,509,141.12. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 27,844 shares in the company, valued at $6,742,703.04. This trade represents a 18.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO John P. Sauerland sold 16,664 shares of Progressive stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.24, for a total transaction of $4,153,335.36. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 228,024 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $56,832,701.76. The trade was a 6.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 104,250 shares of company stock valued at $26,332,348. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

Progressive Stock Performance

PGR stock traded down $2.40 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $242.48. 1,196,858 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,240,388. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $255.91 and a 200-day simple moving average of $266.49. The company has a current ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The stock has a market capitalization of $142.14 billion, a PE ratio of 13.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 0.33. The Progressive Corporation has a 1-year low of $220.33 and a 1-year high of $292.99.

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

Progressive Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.2%. Progressive's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 2.25%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Bank of America cut their price objective on Progressive from $337.00 to $336.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on Progressive from $309.00 to $287.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on Progressive from $288.00 to $281.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Progressive from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, July 18th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $265.00 price objective on shares of Progressive and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Progressive currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $283.94.

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.