Aprio Wealth Management LLC Boosts Holdings in The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR)

Aprio Wealth Management LLC raised its position in The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) by 24.3% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 1,546 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 302 shares during the quarter. Aprio Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Progressive were worth $371,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of PGR. Davis Capital Management purchased a new position in Progressive during the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. boosted its holdings in Progressive by 114.1% in the third quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. now owns 137 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Kimelman & Baird LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Progressive during the second quarter worth about $36,000. Friedenthal Financial acquired a new position in shares of Progressive during the third quarter valued at about $49,000. Finally, Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Progressive in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $49,000. 85.34% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Steven Broz sold 2,981 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $251.15, for a total transaction of $748,678.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 26,353 shares in the company, valued at $6,618,555.95. This represents a 10.16 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Andrew J. Quigg sold 681 shares of Progressive stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $242.10, for a total value of $164,870.10. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 33,612 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,137,465.20. The trade was a 1.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 32,919 shares of company stock worth $8,222,168. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Progressive from $299.00 to $302.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Progressive from $251.00 to $256.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on Progressive from $277.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. HSBC downgraded Progressive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $267.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on Progressive from $273.00 to $267.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $275.24.

Progressive Price Performance

NYSE:PGR opened at $235.84 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $138.16 billion, a PE ratio of 17.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 0.41. The Progressive Co. has a 52 week low of $166.92 and a 52 week high of $270.62. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $251.23 and its 200-day moving average price is $241.78.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 15th. The insurance provider reported $3.58 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.40 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $19.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $18.95 billion. Progressive had a return on equity of 33.10% and a net margin of 11.27%. As a group, equities analysts expect that The Progressive Co. will post 13.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Progressive Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 16th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 9th will be issued a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 10th. Progressive’s payout ratio is presently 2.91%.

Progressive 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.