Acorn Financial Advisory Services Inc. ADV Invests $231,000 in The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR)

Acorn Financial Advisory Services Inc. ADV purchased a new position in The Progressive Co. (NYSE:PGR) in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund purchased 911 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $231,000.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of PGR. Davis Capital Management purchased a new position in Progressive in the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. WR Wealth Planners LLC raised 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 worth $26,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Hilltop National Bank grew its stake in shares of Progressive by 126.0% during the 2nd quarter. Hilltop National Bank now owns 165 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares during the period. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. grew its stake in shares of Progressive by 114.1% during the 3rd quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. now owns 137 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the period. Finally, LRI Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Progressive during the 1st quarter valued at about $36,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.34% of the company’s stock.

Progressive Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:PGR traded up $6.25 during trading on Friday, hitting $261.52. The stock had a trading volume of 2,603,589 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,472,977. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $251.41 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $228.12. The company has a quick ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $153.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 0.36. The Progressive Co. has a 12-month low of $149.14 and a 12-month high of $263.39.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The insurance provider reported $3.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.40 by $0.18. The firm had revenue of $19.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.95 billion. Progressive had a return on equity of 33.10% and a net margin of 11.27%. On average, equities research analysts expect that The Progressive Co. will post 13.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PGR has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Progressive from $300.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. HSBC raised Progressive from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $253.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Monday, August 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on Progressive from $262.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Bank of America increased their price target on Progressive from $319.00 to $331.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their target price on Progressive from $277.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $269.56.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Steven Broz sold 2,982 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $260.00, for a total value of $775,320.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 29,334 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,626,840. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other Progressive news, insider Steven Broz sold 2,982 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $260.00, for a total transaction of $775,320.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 29,334 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,626,840. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider John Jo Murphy sold 9,512 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $237.50, for a total value of $2,259,100.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 45,787 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,874,412.50. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 74,843 shares of company stock valued at $18,674,912 in the last three months. 0.34% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.