Zuckerman Investment Group LLC Sells 15,126 Shares of The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR)

Zuckerman Investment Group LLC reduced its stake in shares of The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) by 13.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 97,378 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 15,126 shares during the quarter. Progressive accounts for approximately 2.4% of Zuckerman Investment Group LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 11th biggest position. Zuckerman Investment Group LLC’s holdings in Progressive were worth $24,239,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Kesler Norman & Wride LLC grew its holdings in Progressive by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Kesler Norman & Wride LLC now owns 3,695 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $885,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the period. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Progressive by 54.7% in the 4th quarter. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 116 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the period. LRI Investments LLC increased its position in Progressive by 16.5% in the 3rd quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 296 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $76,000 after buying an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Washington Trust Bank raised its stake in Progressive by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. Washington Trust Bank now owns 1,066 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $255,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the period. Finally, SYM FINANCIAL Corp boosted its holdings in Progressive by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. SYM FINANCIAL Corp now owns 1,602 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $384,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.34% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Mariann Wojtkun Marshall sold 585 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $243.29, for a total value of $142,324.65. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,983 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $969,024.07. This represents a 12.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO John P. Sauerland sold 1,542 shares of Progressive stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $282.66, for a total transaction of $435,861.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 268,024 shares in the company, valued at approximately $75,759,663.84. This trade represents a 0.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 56,317 shares of company stock valued at $14,844,282 in the last three months. 0.34% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Progressive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, April 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Progressive from $267.00 to $287.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday. Barclays lifted their price target on Progressive from $264.00 to $285.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. BMO Capital Markets lowered 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. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Progressive from $313.00 to $317.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Progressive currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $281.41.

Progressive Trading Up 4.0 %

Shares of PGR stock opened at $270.69 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.31. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $270.81 and its two-hundred day moving average is $256.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $158.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.80, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.38. The Progressive Co. has a fifty-two week low of $201.34 and a fifty-two week high of $292.99.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The insurance provider reported $4.08 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.44 by $0.64. Progressive had a return on equity of 33.79% and a net margin of 11.25%. Research analysts expect that The Progressive Co. will post 14.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Progressive Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be paid a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 3rd. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.15%. Progressive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 2.78%.

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.