Progressive (NYSE:PGR) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Analyst Says

Key Points

• Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised its price target for Progressive from $268 to $270, indicating a potential upside of 10.68% from the current price.
• Progressive's consensus rating is currently "Hold" with a target price of $279.44, following a mix of ratings from various analysts.
• In recent insider trading, CEO Susan Patricia Griffith sold 30,659 shares, decreasing her ownership by 6.05%, while other insiders have also sold significant shares.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR - Get Free Report) had its price target raised by equities researchers at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $268.00 to $270.00 in a report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a "market perform" rating on the insurance provider's stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods' price target points to a potential upside of 11.45% from the company's previous close.

PGR has been the topic of several other research reports. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on shares of Progressive from $309.00 to $287.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 11th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on Progressive from $280.00 to $268.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 21st. BMO Capital Markets lowered Progressive from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $279.00 to $250.00 in a research report on Wednesday. Wall Street Zen upgraded Progressive from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, September 13th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded Progressive to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Progressive has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $279.44.

Progressive Stock Performance

NYSE:PGR traded up $0.26 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $242.26. The company's stock had a trading volume of 4,778,275 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,433,152. Progressive has a fifty-two week low of $228.54 and a fifty-two week high of $292.99. The firm's 50 day moving average is $245.83 and its 200-day moving average is $263.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 0.31 and a quick ratio of 0.31. The firm has a market cap of $142.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.65, a P/E/G ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.32.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 16th. The insurance provider reported $4.88 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $20.08 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.39 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.48 EPS. Progressive's quarterly revenue was up 12.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Progressive will post 14.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Progressive

In other Progressive news, insider Karen Bailo sold 8,922 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.24, for a total value of $2,223,719.28. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 32,346 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,061,917.04. This trade represents a 21.62% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Patrick K. Callahan sold 6,232 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $242.16, for a total value of $1,509,141.12. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 27,844 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,742,703.04. This trade represents a 18.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 130,062 shares of company stock worth $32,217,635 in the last quarter. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Progressive

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of PGR. Highline Wealth Partners LLC increased its stake 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 increased its position 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 during the last quarter. HWG Holdings LP acquired a new stake in shares of Progressive during the 1st quarter worth about $28,000. Garde Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Progressive during the 1st quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Progressive during the 2nd quarter worth about $33,000. 85.34% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.