PROG (NYSE:PRG) Shares Gap Down – Here’s Why

PROG Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:PRG) gapped down prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $42.69, but opened at $37.58. PROG shares last traded at $36.23, with a volume of 153,668 shares traded.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have commented on PRG. TD Cowen raised PROG to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 29th. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $60.00 target price on shares of PROG in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Finally, Raymond James raised shares of PROG from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $48.00 price target for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $53.83.

PROG Stock Down 22.8 %

The firm has a market cap of $1.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.10 and a beta of 2.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 2.34 and a current ratio of 4.97. The business’s 50-day moving average is $42.74 and its 200-day moving average is $45.08.

PROG (NYSE:PRG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The company reported $0.80 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.03. PROG had a return on equity of 24.56% and a net margin of 6.55%. On average, equities analysts predict that PROG Holdings, Inc. will post 3.36 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On PROG

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of PRG. Whittier Trust Co. acquired a new position in PROG in the third quarter valued at about $26,000. Financial Management Professionals Inc. bought a new stake in shares of PROG in the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. Summit Securities Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of PROG in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in PROG by 765.6% during the 4th 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 last quarter. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in PROG by 141.1% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,208 shares of the company’s stock valued at $51,000 after purchasing an additional 707 shares during the period. 97.92% of the stock is owned by 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.