PROG (NYSE:PRG) Shares Up 4.7% – Here’s What Happened

Shares of PROG Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:PRG) rose 4.7% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $28.22 and last traded at $28.16. Approximately 315,716 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 39% from the average daily volume of 515,509 shares. The stock had previously closed at $26.90.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PRG has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $60.00 price objective on shares of PROG in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. TD Cowen raised PROG to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 29th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group downgraded PROG from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $58.00 to $29.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $49.00.

PROG Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 2.34, a current ratio of 5.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.28 and a beta of 2.14. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $39.42 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $44.08.

PROG (NYSE:PRG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The company reported $0.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.03. PROG had a net margin of 8.01% and a return on equity of 24.25%. The firm had revenue of $623.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $612.67 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.72 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that PROG Holdings, Inc. will post 3.45 earnings per share for the current year.

PROG Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 13th will be issued a $0.13 dividend. This is an increase from PROG’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.12. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 13th. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.82%. PROG’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 10.57%.

Insider Transactions at PROG

In related news, Director Caroline Sio-Chin Sheu bought 1,650 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $28.01 per share, for a total transaction of $46,216.50. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 18,291 shares in the company, valued at $512,330.91. This trade represents a 9.92 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Douglas C. Curling acquired 10,000 shares of PROG stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 21st. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $29.88 per share, for a total transaction of $298,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 45,913 shares in the company, valued at $1,371,880.44. This trade represents a 27.85 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 2.74% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of PROG

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PRG. Summit Securities Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of PROG during the fourth quarter worth $38,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of PROG by 765.6% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,082 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 957 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of PROG by 141.1% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,208 shares of the company’s stock valued at $51,000 after buying an additional 707 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC raised its position in shares of PROG by 248.6% during the 4th quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,370 shares of the company’s stock worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 977 shares during the last quarter. Finally, New Age Alpha Advisors LLC acquired a new position in PROG in the 4th quarter valued at $68,000. 97.92% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About PROG

PROG Holdings, Inc (NYSE:PRG) is a financial technology holding company based in Salt Lake City, Utah with three business segments: Progressive Leasing, which offers lease-to-own transactions primarily to credit-challenged consumers through e-commerce and point-of-sale retail partners, via online, mobile, and in-store solutions; Vive Financial, which provides consumers who may not qualify for traditional prime lending with a variety of second-look, revolving credit products through private label and branded credit cards; and Four Technologies, which provides consumers of all credit backgrounds Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) options through four interest-free installments via its platform, Four.