Inspire Investing LLC Buys 2,294 Shares of The Progressive Corporation $PGR

Key Points

• Inspire Investing LLC increased its stake in The Progressive Corporation by 4.1%, acquiring an additional 2,294 shares, bringing its total to 58,215 shares valued at approximately $16.5 million.
• Progressive reported strong quarterly earnings with an EPS of $4.88, surpassing estimates, and achieved a year-over-year revenue increase of 12.1%.
• Progressive's upcoming quarterly dividend of $0.10 per share indicates a modest annualized yield of 0.2%, with the ex-dividend date set for October 2nd.

Inspire Investing LLC increased its stake in The Progressive Corporation (NYSE:PGR - Free Report) by 4.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 58,215 shares of the insurance provider's stock after acquiring an additional 2,294 shares during the quarter. Progressive comprises 2.0% of Inspire Investing LLC's holdings, making the stock its 2nd largest holding. Inspire Investing LLC's holdings in Progressive were worth $16,475,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in PGR. Highline Wealth Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Progressive by 114.0% in the first quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 92 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares during the period. TruNorth Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Progressive by 210.0% in the first quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 93 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares during the period. HWG Holdings LP acquired a new position in shares of Progressive in the first quarter worth approximately $28,000. Garde Capital Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Progressive in the first quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Ransom Advisory Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Progressive in the first quarter worth approximately $35,000. 85.34% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Progressive Trading Up 0.9%

NYSE PGR opened at $248.69 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $145.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.01, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.32. The Progressive Corporation has a 52 week low of $228.54 and a 52 week high of $292.99. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $246.68 and a 200-day moving average price of $264.95. The company has a quick ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 16th. The insurance provider reported $4.88 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.43 by $0.45. The firm had revenue of $20.08 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.39 billion. Progressive had a return on equity of 35.37% and a net margin of 12.66%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 12.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.48 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that The Progressive Corporation will post 14.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Progressive Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 2nd. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.2%. Progressive's payout ratio is presently 2.25%.

Insider Activity at Progressive

In related news, CFO John P. Sauerland sold 16,664 shares of Progressive stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.24, for a total transaction of $4,153,335.36. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 228,024 shares of the company's stock, valued at $56,832,701.76. The trade was a 6.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Lori A. Niederst sold 8,063 shares of Progressive stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.18, for a total value of $2,017,201.34. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 39,040 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,767,027.20. The trade was a 17.12% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 139,010 shares of company stock valued at $34,547,699 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have weighed in on PGR. Citigroup reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Progressive in a report on Friday, August 29th. Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded Progressive to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. Bank of America lifted their target price on Progressive from $344.00 to $347.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday. UBS Group lowered their target price on Progressive from $280.00 to $268.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 21st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on Progressive from $309.00 to $287.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 11th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $284.82.

Progressive Company 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.

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