The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) is Trexquant Investment LP’s 7th Largest Position

Trexquant Investment LP increased its stake in shares of The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) by 45.9% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 206,840 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 65,109 shares during the quarter. Progressive makes up 0.6% of Trexquant Investment LP’s holdings, making the stock its 7th biggest position. Trexquant Investment LP’s holdings in Progressive were worth $49,561,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Webster Bank N. A. bought a new position in Progressive during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Hager Investment Management Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Progressive during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Progressive by 54.7% in the fourth quarter. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 116 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the period. Valley National Advisers Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Progressive by 3,000.0% during the 4th quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 124 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Atala Financial Inc bought a new position in Progressive in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.34% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Mariann Wojtkun Marshall sold 191 shares of Progressive stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $242.10, for a total value of $46,241.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,982 shares in the company, valued at $964,042.20. The trade was a 4.58 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Andrew J. Quigg sold 681 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $242.10, for a total value of $164,870.10. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 33,612 shares in the company, valued at $8,137,465.20. This represents a 1.99 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 66,255 shares of company stock valued at $17,250,271. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Progressive Stock Performance

PGR opened at $283.44 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $266.11 and its 200-day moving average price is $256.15. The company has a market cap of $166.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.35. The Progressive Co. has a 52-week low of $201.34 and a 52-week high of $292.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that The Progressive Co. will post 14.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Progressive Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be paid a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently weighed in on PGR shares. Roth Mkm lifted their target price on Progressive from $290.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Progressive from $313.00 to $317.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Progressive from $300.00 to $307.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Bank of America lowered their price target on Progressive from $318.00 to $300.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on Progressive from $264.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average 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.