Alamar Capital Management LLC Takes $3.69 Million Position in The Progressive Corporation $PGR

Key Points

• Alamar Capital Management acquired 16,874 Progressive shares worth approximately $3.69 million, making PGR its sixth-largest holding at 1.9% of the portfolio. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 85.34% of the stock.
• Progressive insiders sold 82,224 shares valued at about $17.4 million over the past three months, while analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating with an average price target of $233.16.
• Progressive reported quarterly EPS of $5.67, exceeding estimates by $1.03, and revenue of $23.61 billion. Shares opened at $206.98, and the company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.10 per share.

Alamar Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in The Progressive Corporation (NYSE:PGR - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 16,874 shares of the insurance provider's stock, valued at approximately $3,686,000. Progressive makes up 1.9% of Alamar Capital Management LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 6th largest holding.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Progressive in the 2nd quarter worth $10,496,271,000. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Progressive during the 4th quarter worth about $1,836,094,000. Deutsche Bank AG bought a new stake in Progressive during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $1,098,838,000. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in Progressive by 181.8% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 6,506,302 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $1,481,615,000 after purchasing an additional 4,197,212 shares during the period. Finally, Diamant Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in Progressive by 19,724.0% in the 1st quarter. Diamant Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,068,876 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $806,614,000 after buying an additional 4,048,351 shares during the last quarter. 85.34% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Progressive

In related news, Director Jeffrey D. Kelly sold 7,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $216.33, for a total value of $1,514,310.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 22,546 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,877,376.18. This represents a 23.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Susan Patricia Griffith sold 37,338 shares of Progressive stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $212.71, for a total value of $7,942,165.98. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 522,776 shares in the company, valued at $111,199,682.96. The trade was a 6.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 82,224 shares of company stock valued at $17,416,438. Corporate insiders own 0.32% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on the company. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on Progressive from $220.00 to $205.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Bank of America reduced their price objective on Progressive from $313.00 to $308.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Progressive from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $190.00 to $210.00 in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $208.00 target price on shares of Progressive in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Progressive from $205.00 to $198.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Progressive has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $233.16.

Progressive Stock Up 1.5%

Shares of PGR stock opened at $206.98 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $120.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.27. The Progressive Corporation has a one year low of $189.20 and a one year high of $254.93. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $214.58 and a 200 day moving average price of $206.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.29 and a quick ratio of 0.29.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 15th. The insurance provider reported $5.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.64 by $1.03. The firm had revenue of $23.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $19.49 billion. Progressive had a net margin of 12.84% and a return on equity of 32.92%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $5.40 EPS. Analysts predict that The Progressive Corporation will post 17.57 earnings per share for the current year.

Progressive Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 9th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 1st will be paid a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 1st. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.2%. Progressive's payout ratio is presently 2.01%.

Progressive Profile

Progressive Corporation is a large U.S.-based property and casualty insurer that primarily underwrites personal auto insurance along with a broad suite of related products. Its offerings include coverage for private passenger automobiles, commercial auto fleets, motorcycles, boats and recreational vehicles, as well as homeowners, renters, umbrella and other specialty P&C products. Progressive also provides claims handling, risk management and related services to individual and commercial policyholders.

The company distributes its products through a mix of direct channels—online and by phone—and an extensive independent agent network.

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