The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) Position Trimmed by James Hambro & Partners LLP

James Hambro & Partners LLP reduced its stake in shares of The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) by 3.4% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 511,468 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 18,038 shares during the quarter. Progressive accounts for approximately 4.8% of James Hambro & Partners LLP’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest holding. James Hambro & Partners LLP’s holdings in Progressive were worth $122,653,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in Progressive by 1.3% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 24,683,807 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $6,263,763,000 after purchasing an additional 315,411 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Progressive by 13.2% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 14,425,792 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $3,652,235,000 after buying an additional 1,682,213 shares during the period. FMR LLC boosted its stake in shares of Progressive by 1.6% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 10,518,615 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,669,204,000 after buying an additional 170,618 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its holdings in Progressive by 7.0% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 5,067,924 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,286,036,000 after acquiring an additional 330,667 shares during the period. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC raised its position in Progressive by 21.6% during the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 4,749,628 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,205,266,000 after acquiring an additional 842,109 shares in the last quarter. 85.34% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Progressive Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE:PGR opened at $238.58 on Monday. The Progressive Co. has a 52-week low of $175.50 and a 52-week high of $270.62. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The business has a fifty day moving average of $248.27 and a two-hundred day moving average of $243.79. The stock has a market cap of $139.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.34, a PEG ratio of 0.62 and a beta of 0.41.

Progressive Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 9th were given a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 10th. Progressive’s payout ratio is currently 2.91%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Progressive from $277.00 to $261.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Progressive from $197.00 to $237.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on Progressive from $295.00 to $294.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Hsbc Global Res cut Progressive from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Progressive from $299.00 to $302.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $274.65.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Progressive news, insider Andrew J. Quigg sold 962 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 $234,044.98. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 34,787 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,463,329.23. This represents a 2.69 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO John P. Sauerland sold 10,000 shares of Progressive stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $238.66, for a total transaction of $2,386,600.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 282,958 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $67,530,756.28. This represents a 3.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 42,506 shares of company stock valued at $10,531,159 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

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.