Progressive (NYSE:PGR) Stock Rating Upgraded by Mizuho

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) was upgraded by equities researchers at Mizuho to a “hold” rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

PGR has been the subject of several other research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Progressive from $301.00 to $303.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 9th. BMO Capital Markets set a $256.00 price objective on Progressive in a report on Tuesday, December 9th. Zacks Research lowered Progressive from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, October 10th. Bank of America lowered their price target on Progressive from $350.00 to $348.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, December 9th. Finally, Citigroup cut their price objective on Progressive from $301.38 to $300.60 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $264.92.

Progressive Stock Performance

NYSE PGR opened at $231.76 on Monday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $223.74 and its 200 day moving average price is $241.82. The company has a current ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. Progressive has a twelve month low of $199.90 and a twelve month high of $292.99. The company has a market capitalization of $135.90 billion, a PE ratio of 12.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 0.36.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 15th. The insurance provider reported $4.45 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.04 by ($0.59). The business had revenue of $21.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $21.64 billion. Progressive had a net margin of 12.57% and a return on equity of 33.88%. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.58 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Progressive will post 14.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Progressive news, insider John Jo Murphy sold 2,218 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $242.10, for a total value of $536,977.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 43,506 shares in the company, valued at $10,532,802.60. This represents a 4.85% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Steven Broz sold 1,345 shares of Progressive stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $228.29, for a total transaction of $307,050.05. Following the sale, the insider owned 27,698 shares in the company, valued at $6,323,176.42. This represents a 4.63% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 17,673 shares of company stock valued at $4,163,005. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Progressive

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC increased its position in shares of Progressive by 15.6% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 3,392 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $813,000 after acquiring an additional 457 shares during the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Progressive during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $269,000. Bison Wealth LLC grew its stake in Progressive by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 2,568 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $615,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. RWA Wealth Partners LLC increased its holdings in Progressive by 326.8% during the 1st quarter. RWA Wealth Partners LLC now owns 4,166 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,179,000 after purchasing an additional 3,190 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JT Stratford LLC acquired a new position in shares of Progressive in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $1,168,000. 85.34% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.