Arjuna Capital Decreases Stock Holdings in The Progressive Corporation (NYSE:PGR)

Key Points

• Arjuna Capital reduced its stake in The Progressive Corporation by 9.7%, leaving it with 11,184 shares valued at approximately $3.17 million after selling 1,200 shares in Q1.
• Insider trading activity includes significant sales, with insider Patrick K. Callahan selling 6,232 shares for over $1.5 million and Karen Bailo selling 8,922 shares for around $2.2 million, representing declines in their ownership.
• Progressive recently reported earnings of $4.88 per share, exceeding estimates, and has a current market capitalization of approximately $145.07 billion.

Arjuna Capital lessened its stake in The Progressive Corporation (NYSE:PGR - Free Report) by 9.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 11,184 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 1,200 shares during the quarter. Arjuna Capital's holdings in Progressive were worth $3,165,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PGR. Integrated Advisors Network LLC raised its holdings in shares of Progressive by 1.0% in the 1st quarter. Integrated Advisors Network LLC now owns 3,808 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $1,078,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Pines Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Progressive by 3.0% during the 1st quarter. Pines Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,287 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $335,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Progressive by 2.0% in the first quarter. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,940 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $549,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Beacon Financial Group raised its holdings in Progressive by 1.1% during the first quarter. Beacon Financial Group now owns 3,659 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $1,036,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Progressive by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC now owns 1,927 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $545,000 after buying an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.34% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Progressive news, insider Patrick K. Callahan sold 6,232 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $242.16, for a total value of $1,509,141.12. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 27,844 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,742,703.04. This trade represents a 18.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Karen Bailo sold 8,922 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.24, for a total value of $2,223,719.28. Following the transaction, the insider owned 32,346 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,061,917.04. This represents a 21.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 104,250 shares of company stock worth $26,332,348. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.

Progressive Stock Performance

NYSE PGR opened at $247.47 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The company has a market capitalization of $145.07 billion, a PE ratio of 13.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 0.33. The business's 50-day moving average price is $258.19 and its 200 day moving average price is $266.02. The Progressive Corporation has a twelve month low of $213.47 and a twelve month high of $292.99.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 16th. The insurance provider reported $4.88 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.43 by $0.45. The firm had revenue of $20.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $20.39 billion. Progressive had a return on equity of 35.37% and a net margin of 12.66%. Progressive's quarterly revenue was up 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.48 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that The Progressive Corporation will post 14.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Progressive Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 11th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 4th were given a $0.10 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 15.0%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 3rd. Progressive's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 2.25%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on PGR. UBS Group cut their target price on Progressive from $280.00 to $268.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Progressive from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on shares of Progressive from $290.00 to $268.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on Progressive from $327.00 to $319.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Progressive from $290.00 to $280.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $286.88.

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.

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