KBC Group NV Lowers Stock Holdings in The Progressive Corporation $PGR

KBC Group NV reduced its stake in The Progressive Corporation (NYSE:PGR) by 55.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 183,078 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 232,345 shares during the quarter. KBC Group NV’s holdings in Progressive were worth $36,293,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. SEB Asset Management AB bought a new stake in Progressive in the first quarter worth $32,770,000. Swiss National Bank increased its holdings in shares of Progressive by 7.1% during the first quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 1,720,400 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $341,052,000 after acquiring an additional 114,100 shares in the last quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. raised its position in shares of Progressive by 9.9% in the 1st quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. now owns 100,635 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $19,950,000 after purchasing an additional 9,030 shares during the last quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd raised its position in shares of Progressive by 12.0% in the 1st quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd now owns 123,790 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $24,930,000 after purchasing an additional 13,260 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kinsale Capital Group Inc. boosted its stake in Progressive by 11.7% in the 1st quarter. Kinsale Capital Group Inc. now owns 57,361 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $11,371,000 after purchasing an additional 5,997 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.34% of the company’s stock.

Progressive Stock Up 2.0%

Shares of NYSE PGR opened at $212.09 on Tuesday. The Progressive Corporation has a 12-month low of $189.20 and a 12-month high of $254.93. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $209.08 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $206.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $123.93 billion, a PE ratio of 10.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.86 and a beta of 0.26. The company has a current ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24.

Progressive Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 2nd were paid a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 2nd. Progressive’s payout ratio is 2.01%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on PGR. Bank of America cut their price objective on shares of Progressive from $313.00 to $308.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $208.00 target price on Progressive in a report on Friday, May 22nd. HSBC lifted their target price on Progressive from $214.00 to $221.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Progressive from $205.00 to $198.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on Progressive from $231.00 to $226.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $235.05.

Insider Buying and Selling at Progressive

In related news, Director Jeffrey D. Kelly sold 7,000 shares of Progressive stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $216.33, for a total transaction of $1,514,310.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 22,546 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,877,376.18. This trade represents a 23.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Steven Broz sold 1,157 shares of Progressive stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.76, for a total transaction of $236,907.32. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 27,511 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,633,152.36. This trade represents a 4.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 15,230 shares of company stock worth $3,165,817 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.32% of the company’s stock.

About Progressive

Progressive Corporation is a large U.S.-based property and casualty insurer that primarily underwrites personal auto insurance along with a broad suite of related products. Its offerings include coverage for private passenger automobiles, commercial auto fleets, motorcycles, boats and recreational vehicles, as well as homeowners, renters, umbrella and other specialty P&C products. Progressive also provides claims handling, risk management and related services to individual and commercial policyholders.

The company distributes its products through a mix of direct channels—online and by phone—and an extensive independent agent network.