ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. Sells 4,370 Shares of The Progressive Corporation $PGR

Key Points

• ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. reduced its stake in The Progressive Corporation by 2.4%, selling 4,370 shares and now holds 181,570 shares valued at approximately $48.45 million.
• Progressive reported an EPS of $4.88 for the last quarter, exceeding estimates, with revenue rising 12.1% year-over-year, despite missing analyst revenue targets.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.10 per share, with a dividend yield of 0.2%, set to be paid on October 10th.

ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. lessened its position in The Progressive Corporation (NYSE:PGR - Free Report) by 2.4% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 181,570 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 4,370 shares during the quarter. Progressive accounts for 1.8% of ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest position. ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc.'s holdings in Progressive were worth $48,454,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in PGR. Highline Wealth Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Progressive by 114.0% in 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 during the last quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Progressive by 210.0% in the 1st quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 93 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares during the last quarter. HWG Holdings LP bought a new stake in shares of Progressive in the 1st quarter worth about $28,000. Garde Capital Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Progressive in the 1st quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Ransom Advisory Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Progressive in the 1st quarter worth about $35,000. Institutional investors own 85.34% of the company's stock.

Progressive Trading Up 1.1%

NYSE:PGR opened at $246.10 on Friday. The Progressive Corporation has a one year low of $228.54 and a one year high of $292.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a current ratio of 0.31. The firm has a market cap of $144.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.86, a P/E/G ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 0.32. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $245.14 and a 200-day simple moving average of $260.84.

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

Progressive Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 2nd will be issued a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 2nd. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.2%. Progressive's payout ratio is currently 2.25%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider John Jo Murphy sold 2,218 shares of Progressive stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $242.10, for a total value of $536,977.80. Following the transaction, the insider owned 43,506 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,532,802.60. The trade was a 4.85% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Susan Patricia Griffith sold 30,659 shares of Progressive stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $246.06, for a total transaction of $7,543,953.54. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 476,286 shares in the company, valued at approximately $117,194,933.16. The trade was a 6.05% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 130,045 shares of company stock worth $31,997,390. 0.34% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on PGR shares. Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded shares of Progressive to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Progressive in a report on Monday, September 15th. They set a "peer perform" rating for the company. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on shares of Progressive from $309.00 to $287.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 11th. Citigroup reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Progressive in a report on Friday, August 29th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of Progressive from $268.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, September 18th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $279.63.

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding PGR? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for The Progressive Corporation (NYSE:PGR - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.