The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) Shares Sold by Makaira Partners LLC

Makaira Partners LLC trimmed its position in shares of The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR - Free Report) by 45.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 329,243 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 274,360 shares during the period. Progressive accounts for approximately 10.9% of Makaira Partners LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest position. Makaira Partners LLC owned approximately 0.06% of Progressive worth $78,890,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Webster Bank N. A. purchased a new stake in shares of Progressive in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Hager Investment Management Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Progressive in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Progressive by 54.7% during the 4th quarter. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 116 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the period. Valley National Advisers Inc. grew its stake in Progressive by 3,000.0% in the fourth quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 124 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the period. Finally, Atala Financial Inc bought a new stake in Progressive during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Institutional investors own 85.34% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on PGR. Jefferies Financial Group reduced 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. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Progressive from $275.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, March 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Progressive from $267.00 to $287.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Barclays upped their price objective on Progressive from $285.00 to $297.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Roth Mkm raised their target price on Progressive from $290.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $285.76.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Jeffrey D. Kelly sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total value of $2,500,000.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 27,741 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,935,250. The trade was a 26.50 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Devin C. Johnson sold 400 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.04, for a total transaction of $110,016.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 8,370 shares in the company, valued at $2,302,084.80. This trade represents a 4.56 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 43,749 shares of company stock worth $11,786,613 over the last three months. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Progressive Trading Down 0.0 %

Shares of PGR stock opened at $265.11 on Monday. The Progressive Co. has a 1-year low of $201.34 and a 1-year high of $292.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $155.42 billion, a PE ratio of 18.41, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.31 and a quick ratio of 0.30. The business has a 50-day moving average of $274.12 and a 200 day moving average of $258.36.

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

Progressive Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.15%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 3rd. Progressive's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 2.70%.

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.

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