Progressive (NYSE:PGR) Earns "Outperform" Rating from Keefe, Bruyette & Woods

Key Points

• Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed its “Outperform” rating on Progressive and set a $250 price target, implying 16.96% upside from the stock’s prior close.
• Progressive shares traded at $213.75, while analyst sentiment remained mixed: the consensus rating was “Hold” with an average target price of $235.95.
• The insurer’s latest results showed strong premium and policy growth, but August net income fell 22% and the combined ratio worsened to 89.3, signaling weaker underwriting profitability.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "outperform" rating reissued by stock analysts at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods in a report released on Friday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $250.00 price objective on the insurance provider's stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods' price objective would suggest a potential upside of 16.96% from the stock's previous close.

Several other research firms have also recently commented on PGR. Evercore set a $240.00 price target on Progressive in a report on Friday, July 10th. Mizuho cut their target price on Progressive from $236.00 to $230.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Progressive in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Progressive from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $190.00 to $210.00 in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group restated a "buy" rating and issued a $230.00 price objective on shares of Progressive in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Progressive has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $235.95.

Progressive Stock Performance

Progressive stock traded down $2.54 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $213.75. The company had a trading volume of 1,277,781 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,059,807. The company has a quick ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The firm has a market cap of $124.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.73, a PEG ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.27. The company has a 50 day moving average of $215.64 and a 200-day moving average of $208.53. Progressive has a 52 week low of $189.20 and a 52 week high of $248.17.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 15th. The insurance provider reported $5.67 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.64 by $1.03. Progressive had a net margin of 12.84% and a return on equity of 32.92%. The business had revenue of $23.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $19.49 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $5.40 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Progressive will post 17.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Progressive news, CFO Andrew J. Quigg sold 3,499 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.00, for a total transaction of $769,780.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 42,595 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,370,900. This represents a 7.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Susan Griffith sold 37,338 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $219.50, for a total transaction of $8,195,691.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 485,438 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $106,553,641. The trade was a 7.14% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 113,714 shares of company stock worth $24,466,294 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.32% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Progressive

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Bank of Nova Scotia bought a new stake in Progressive during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $76,260,000. Allstate Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Progressive by 106.1% during the fourth quarter. Allstate Corp now owns 44,513 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $10,136,000 after purchasing an additional 22,915 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Progressive in the fourth quarter worth $1,836,094,000. Callan Family Office LLC acquired a new stake in Progressive in the second quarter valued at $3,025,000. Finally, Van Cleef Asset Management Inc raised its position in Progressive by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Van Cleef Asset Management Inc now owns 761,587 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $173,429,000 after purchasing an additional 9,017 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.34% of the company's stock.

More Progressive News

Here are the key news stories impacting Progressive this week:

• Positive Sentiment: August net premiums written increased 6% to $7.605 billion, while net premiums earned rose 5% to $7.354 billion. Total policies in force grew 7% to 40.492 million, led by 9% growth in direct auto policies and 7% growth in total personal-lines policies. Progressive Reports August 2026 Results
• Positive Sentiment: Progressive recorded $108 million in pretax net realized investment gains, up 38% from $78 million a year earlier, providing some support to monthly results. Progressive Reports August Premium Growth
• Neutral Sentiment: Mizuho Securities maintained its “Hold” rating on PGR, suggesting limited near-term conviction despite Progressive’s long-term operating strengths. Mizuho Securities Maintains Hold Rating
• Negative Sentiment: August net income fell 22% to $951 million, or $1.63 per diluted share, from $1.22 billion, or $2.07 per share, in the prior-year period. The decline occurred despite premium growth and was worse than the 5% increase in earned premiums.
• Negative Sentiment: The combined ratio deteriorated to 89.3 from 83.1, a 6.2-point increase. The higher ratio signals weaker underwriting profitability and is likely the main reason investors reacted negatively to the release. Progressive Posts 22 Percent Drop in Net Income

Progressive Company Profile

Progressive Corporation, founded in 1937 and headquartered in Mayfield Village, Ohio, is an insurance company that primarily serves customers in the United States. The company is best known for its personal and commercial auto insurance businesses and distributes products through independent agents, direct channels and digital platforms.

Progressive offers a broad range of insurance products, including coverage for automobiles, motorcycles, boats, recreational vehicles, homes and renters.

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