Primecap Management Co. CA Has $370.96 Million Holdings in The Progressive Corporation (NYSE:PGR)

Key Points

• Primecap Management Co. CA reduced its stake in The Progressive Corporation by 5.2%, selling 71,570 shares in the first quarter, and now holds 1,310,760 shares valued at approximately $370.96 million.
• Progressive reported earnings per share of $4.88 for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations, with a revenue of $20.08 billion, up 12.1% year-over-year, though below forecasts.
• The company recently declared a quarterly $0.10 dividend, reflecting a yield of 15.0%, with an insiders' selling activity totaling 104,250 shares valued at approximately $26.33 million over the past 90 days.

Primecap Management Co. CA lessened its stake in The Progressive Corporation (NYSE:PGR - Free Report) by 5.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,310,760 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 71,570 shares during the period. Primecap Management Co. CA owned about 0.22% of Progressive worth $370,958,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Highline Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Progressive by 114.0% in 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 lifted its holdings in Progressive by 210.0% during the 1st quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 93 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 63 shares during the last quarter. HWG Holdings LP acquired a new position in shares of Progressive in the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,000. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Progressive during the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Garde Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Progressive during the first quarter worth $33,000. 85.34% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on PGR. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Progressive from $297.00 to $287.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 7th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price 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. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Progressive from $290.00 to $280.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 14th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Progressive from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, July 18th. Finally, Evercore ISI lowered Progressive from an "outperform" rating to an "in-line" rating and set a $275.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Progressive currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $286.88.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Progressive news, CFO John P. Sauerland sold 16,664 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 228,024 shares in the company, valued at approximately $56,832,701.76. This trade represents a 6.81% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Patrick K. Callahan sold 6,232 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $242.16, for a total transaction of $1,509,141.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 27,844 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,742,703.04. This represents a 18.29% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 104,250 shares of company stock worth $26,332,348 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.

Progressive Price Performance

PGR stock traded up $1.62 during trading on Friday, hitting $246.93. The company had a trading volume of 114,711 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,245,735. The business has a 50 day moving average of $257.56 and a 200 day moving average of $266.03. The firm has a market capitalization of $144.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.92, a P/E/G ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 0.33. 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 Progressive Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $217.91 and a fifty-two week high of $292.99.

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

Progressive Dividend Announcement

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

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.