Horizon Investment Services LLC Grows Stake in The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR)

Horizon Investment Services LLC lifted its stake in The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) by 24.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 17,506 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after buying an additional 3,462 shares during the period. Progressive makes up 1.8% of Horizon Investment Services LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest position. Horizon Investment Services LLC’s holdings in Progressive were worth $4,195,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of PGR. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Progressive by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 53,400,366 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $12,795,262,000 after acquiring an additional 583,376 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its stake in Progressive by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 24,683,807 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $6,263,763,000 after buying an additional 315,411 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Progressive by 13.2% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 14,425,792 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $3,652,235,000 after buying an additional 1,682,213 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Progressive in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,843,045,000. Finally, GQG Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Progressive by 67.6% during the fourth quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 5,171,501 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,239,143,000 after acquiring an additional 2,085,833 shares in the last quarter. 85.34% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Progressive

In related news, CFO John P. Sauerland sold 10,000 shares of Progressive stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $238.66, for a total value of $2,386,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 282,958 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $67,530,756.28. This trade represents a 3.41 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Devin C. Johnson sold 400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.04, for a total transaction of $110,016.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 8,370 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,302,084.80. This represents a 4.56 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 66,255 shares of company stock valued at $16,877,471 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Progressive Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:PGR opened at $279.13 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $163.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.38, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.31 and a quick ratio of 0.30. The Progressive Co. has a 12 month low of $201.34 and a 12 month high of $292.99. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $265.32 and its 200 day moving average price is $255.82.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The insurance provider reported $4.08 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.44 by $0.64. Progressive had a return on equity of 33.79% and a net margin of 11.25%. Equities research analysts anticipate that The Progressive Co. will post 14.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Progressive Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be issued a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 3rd. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.14%. Progressive’s payout ratio is currently 2.78%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on PGR shares. Roth Mkm boosted their target price on shares of Progressive from $290.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Progressive from $264.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 13th. HSBC lowered shares of Progressive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $267.00 price target for the company. in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Bank of America dropped their price objective on shares of Progressive from $318.00 to $300.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res downgraded Progressive from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $281.06.

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.