Longbow Finance SA Makes New Investment in The Progressive Corporation (NYSE:PGR)

Key Points

• Longbow Finance SA has acquired a new stake in The Progressive Corporation, purchasing 31,983 shares worth approximately $9.05 million, making it the 29th largest holding in their investment portfolio.
• Progressive reported a quarterly EPS of $4.88, exceeding analysts' expectations and reflecting a 12.1% increase in revenue compared to the same period last year.
• The company recently announced a $0.10 per share dividend with a yield of 0.15%, while various analysts have updated their price targets, indicating a market performance outlook for the stock.

Longbow Finance SA acquired a new stake in The Progressive Corporation (NYSE:PGR - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 31,983 shares of the insurance provider's stock, valued at approximately $9,052,000. Progressive makes up 1.1% of Longbow Finance SA's portfolio, making the stock its 29th biggest holding.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Highline Wealth Partners LLC increased its stake in Progressive by 114.0% during the 1st quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 92 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Progressive by 210.0% during the 1st quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 93 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. HWG Holdings LP bought a new stake in Progressive during the 1st quarter valued at $28,000. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Progressive during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Garde Capital Inc. purchased a new position in Progressive during the 1st quarter worth $33,000. Institutional investors own 85.34% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have issued reports on PGR. Evercore ISI downgraded shares of Progressive from an "outperform" rating to an "in-line" rating and set a $275.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Progressive from $328.00 to $333.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, June 20th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on shares of Progressive from $290.00 to $268.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on shares of Progressive from $327.00 to $319.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Progressive from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, July 18th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $286.88.

Progressive Stock Performance

NYSE PGR traded down $10.28 during trading on Monday, hitting $239.82. 3,472,683 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,256,537. The stock has a market capitalization of $140.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.51, a PEG ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 0.37. The Progressive Corporation has a 12-month low of $208.13 and a 12-month high of $292.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a current ratio of 0.34. The business has a 50 day moving average of $264.25 and a 200-day moving average of $266.28.

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 business had revenue of $20.08 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.39 billion. Progressive had a net margin of 12.66% and a return on equity of 35.37%. The company's revenue was up 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.48 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that The Progressive Corporation will post 14.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Progressive Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 11th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 4th were given a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 0.15%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 3rd. Progressive's dividend payout ratio is presently 2.25%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Stuart B. Burgdoerfer sold 3,681 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $260.43, for a total value of $958,642.83. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 12,217 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,181,673.31. This represents a 23.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Dyke Kahina Van sold 2,490 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $277.67, for a total transaction of $691,398.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 12,429 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,451,160.43. This trade represents a 16.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 33,972 shares of company stock valued at $9,078,681. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.