Progressive (NYSE:PGR) Given New $280.00 Price Target at The Goldman Sachs Group

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) had its price target lifted by The Goldman Sachs Group from $262.00 to $280.00 in a research report released on Wednesday morning, Benzinga reports. The Goldman Sachs Group currently has a buy rating on the insurance provider’s stock.

PGR has been the subject of several other reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on Progressive from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Progressive from $260.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Progressive from $243.00 to $246.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Progressive from $281.00 to $282.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. Finally, Roth Mkm lifted their price objective on Progressive from $270.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $257.18.

Progressive Price Performance

Progressive stock opened at $259.24 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.31 and a quick ratio of 0.31. The company has a market capitalization of $151.84 billion, a PE ratio of 26.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 0.35. Progressive has a one year low of $137.59 and a one year high of $260.46. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $234.16 and a 200 day simple moving average of $217.25.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 16th. The insurance provider reported $2.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.04 by $0.61. Progressive had a return on equity of 33.01% and a net margin of 10.17%. The firm had revenue of $17.90 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.54 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.57 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 21.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Progressive will post 12.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Progressive Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 3rd will be given a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.15%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 3rd. Progressive’s payout ratio is 4.09%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Susan Patricia Griffith sold 43,370 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $252.20, for a total transaction of $10,937,914.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 473,735 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $119,475,967. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other Progressive news, insider Steven Broz sold 3,050 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $209.81, for a total transaction of $639,920.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 32,453 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,808,963.93. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Susan Patricia Griffith sold 43,370 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $252.20, for a total value of $10,937,914.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 473,735 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $119,475,967. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 146,704 shares of company stock valued at $33,367,408. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Progressive

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. WR Wealth Planners LLC lifted its position in Progressive by 119.6% in the 2nd quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 123 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Indiana Trust & Investment Management CO bought a new position in shares of Progressive during the 1st quarter worth approximately $32,000. Sachetta LLC bought a new position in shares of Progressive during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Northwest Bank & Trust Co bought a new position in shares of Progressive during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Finally, Hilltop National Bank raised its holdings in shares of Progressive by 126.0% in the 2nd quarter. Hilltop National Bank now owns 165 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares during the period. 85.34% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.