Merit Financial Group LLC Raises Position in The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR)

Merit Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR - Free Report) by 10.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 10,087 shares of the insurance provider's stock after purchasing an additional 987 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC's holdings in Progressive were worth $2,855,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in PGR. Archer Investment Corp grew its holdings in Progressive by 295.1% in the 4th quarter. Archer Investment Corp now owns 2,102 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $504,000 after acquiring an additional 1,570 shares during the last quarter. Sycomore Asset Management grew its holdings in Progressive by 42.8% in the 4th quarter. Sycomore Asset Management now owns 51,770 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $13,066,000 after acquiring an additional 15,512 shares during the last quarter. Vivid Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Progressive in the 4th quarter worth $2,143,000. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its holdings in Progressive by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 16,199 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $3,881,000 after acquiring an additional 527 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Paragon Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in Progressive in the 4th quarter worth $1,519,000. Institutional investors own 85.34% of the company's stock.

Progressive Stock Down 0.4%

NYSE PGR traded down $1.01 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $279.19. 2,442,200 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,656,204. The Progressive Co. has a 52-week low of $201.34 and a 52-week high of $292.99. The firm has a market cap of $163.67 billion, a PE ratio of 19.39, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.40. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $276.19 and a 200 day simple moving average of $264.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.31 and a quick ratio of 0.30.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 16th. The insurance provider reported $4.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.28 by $0.37. Progressive had a net margin of 11.25% and a return on equity of 33.79%. The company had revenue of $22.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $21.87 billion. Sell-side analysts anticipate that The Progressive Co. will post 14.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Progressive Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 3rd were given a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 3rd. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.14%. Progressive's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 2.70%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on PGR shares. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on shares of Progressive from $327.00 to $319.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 11th. Morgan Stanley set a $330.00 price target on shares of Progressive and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, May 19th. Roth Mkm raised their target price on shares of Progressive from $290.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Progressive from $282.00 to $288.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Progressive from $324.00 to $328.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Progressive presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $288.59.

Insider Activity at Progressive

In other Progressive news, CFO John P. Sauerland sold 10,000 shares of Progressive stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.37, for a total value of $2,753,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 238,024 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $65,544,668.88. The trade was a 4.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CIO Jonathan S. Bauer sold 1,696 shares of Progressive stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $282.66, for a total transaction of $479,391.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive now directly owns 26,697 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,546,174.02. This trade represents a 5.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 37,755 shares of company stock valued at $10,367,074 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.

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.