Verde Capital Management Acquires 3,595 Shares of The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR)

Verde Capital Management lifted its stake in The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR - Free Report) by 71.9% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 8,594 shares of the insurance provider's stock after buying an additional 3,595 shares during the period. Verde Capital Management's holdings in Progressive were worth $2,432,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hager Investment Management Services LLC acquired a new stake in Progressive during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Progressive by 54.7% during the fourth quarter. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 116 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Progressive during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Valley National Advisers Inc. boosted its stake in Progressive by 3,000.0% during the fourth quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 124 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Atala Financial Inc bought a new position in shares of Progressive during the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. 85.34% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Carl G. Joyce sold 360 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $276.17, for a total value of $99,421.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 655 shares of the company's stock, valued at $180,891.35. This represents a 35.47% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO John P. Sauerland sold 10,000 shares of the company's 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 sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 238,024 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $65,544,668.88. This trade represents a 4.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 43,651 shares of company stock valued at $12,017,780 in the last ninety days. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Progressive Trading Up 1.3%

Shares of PGR traded up $3.66 on Monday, reaching $288.59. 2,107,612 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,646,755. The company has a current ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $169.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.40. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $275.72 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $263.59. The Progressive Co. has a 12 month low of $201.34 and a 12 month high of $292.99.

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

Progressive Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on PGR shares. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on Progressive from $327.00 to $319.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 11th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Progressive from $282.00 to $288.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, April 17th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Progressive from $285.00 to $291.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Wall Street Zen cut Progressive from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued a "market perform" rating and set a $288.00 price objective on shares of Progressive in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $288.59.

About Progressive

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.