Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. Makes New $185.76 Million Investment in The Progressive Corporation $PGR

Key Points

• Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. opened a new position in Progressive during the fourth quarter, buying 814,073 shares worth about $185.76 million.
• Progressive continues to attract heavy institutional interest, with hedge funds and other investors owning 85.34% of the stock and several firms recently increasing their stakes.
• The company reported strong quarterly earnings of $4.80 per share, and it also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.10 per share to be paid July 10.

Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. bought a new position in shares of The Progressive Corporation (NYSE:PGR - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 814,073 shares of the insurance provider's stock, valued at approximately $185,761,000. Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. owned about 0.14% of Progressive at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Capital International Investors grew its position in shares of Progressive by 78.9% in the third quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 13,704,197 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $3,384,082,000 after purchasing an additional 6,045,732 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors grew its position in shares of Progressive by 26.1% in the third quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 11,167,940 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $2,757,905,000 after purchasing an additional 2,314,864 shares during the last quarter. Life Cycle Investment Partners Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Progressive in the fourth quarter valued at about $353,906,000. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC grew its position in shares of Progressive by 2,012.0% in the third quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 767,549 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $189,546,000 after purchasing an additional 731,207 shares during the last quarter. Finally, M&T Bank Corp grew its position in shares of Progressive by 1,363.8% in the fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 706,898 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $160,975,000 after purchasing an additional 658,607 shares during the last quarter. 85.34% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Progressive in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Progressive from $205.00 to $190.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $259.00 price target on shares of Progressive in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $208.00 price target on Progressive in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, Zacks Research raised Progressive from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Progressive presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $238.11.

Progressive Stock Down 2.2%

NYSE PGR opened at $190.27 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 0.27. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $199.66 and a 200 day simple moving average of $209.74. The Progressive Corporation has a twelve month low of $189.20 and a twelve month high of $289.96. The stock has a market cap of $111.18 billion, a PE ratio of 9.67, a PEG ratio of 5.64 and a beta of 0.31.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 15th. The insurance provider reported $4.80 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.67 by $0.13. Progressive had a net margin of 12.92% and a return on equity of 33.47%. The business had revenue of $22.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $23.51 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $4.37 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 6.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that The Progressive Corporation will post 16.36 EPS for the current year.

Progressive Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 2nd. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.2%. Progressive's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 2.03%.

Insider Transactions at Progressive

In other Progressive news, insider Karen Bailo sold 3,517 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $212.00, for a total transaction of $745,604.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 32,348 shares in the company, valued at $6,857,776. This trade represents a 9.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CAO Carl G. Joyce sold 270 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.50, for a total transaction of $55,755.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 558 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $115,227. This represents a 32.61% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 3,928 shares of company stock valued at $831,251. Corporate insiders own 0.32% of the company's stock.

Progressive Company 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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