SageGuard Financial Group LLC Buys Shares of 57,677 The Progressive Corporation $PGR

Key Points

• SageGuard Financial Group LLC bought a new stake of 57,677 shares of The Progressive Corporation in Q4 valued at about $13.13 million, making PGR its 15th-largest holding (≈2.1% of its portfolio).
• Progressive reported quarterly EPS of $4.80, beating estimates of $4.67, while revenue of $22.19 billion missed expectations of $23.51 billion; analysts forecast full-year EPS of 16.37.
• Market sentiment is mixed: the analysts' consensus rating is "Hold" with a $238.39 target, institutional investors own 85.34% of shares, and insiders have sold about 11,687 shares in the past three months.

SageGuard Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in The Progressive Corporation (NYSE:PGR - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 57,677 shares of the insurance provider's stock, valued at approximately $13,134,000. Progressive comprises approximately 2.1% of SageGuard Financial Group LLC's holdings, making the stock its 15th biggest holding.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Liberty One Investment Management LLC raised its position in Progressive by 3.8% in the third quarter. Liberty One Investment Management LLC now owns 1,291 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $319,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the period. True Wealth Design LLC grew its position in Progressive by 20.8% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 279 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $69,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Wealthstream Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Progressive by 4.6% in the 3rd quarter. Wealthstream Advisors Inc. now owns 1,111 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $274,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the period. Revisor Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Progressive by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Revisor Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,902 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $395,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the period. Finally, Cullen Investment Group LTD. boosted its position in Progressive by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Cullen Investment Group LTD. now owns 7,463 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $1,606,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.34% of the company's stock.

Progressive Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of NYSE:PGR opened at $203.62 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $203.47 and a 200-day simple moving average of $214.18. The company has a current ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The Progressive Corporation has a twelve month low of $192.02 and a twelve month high of $289.96. The company has a market capitalization of $119.11 billion, a PE ratio of 10.35, a P/E/G ratio of 6.69 and a beta of 0.34.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 15th. The insurance provider reported $4.80 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.67 by $0.13. Progressive had a return on equity of 33.47% and a net margin of 12.92%.The business had revenue of $22.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $23.51 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $4.37 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that The Progressive Corporation will post 16.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Progressive Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 2nd were given a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 2nd. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.2%. Progressive's payout ratio is 2.03%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on PGR. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Progressive from $205.00 to $190.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $259.00 price objective on shares of Progressive in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Progressive from $215.00 to $218.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on Progressive from $227.00 to $210.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Progressive from $303.00 to $275.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Progressive currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $238.39.

Insider Buying and Selling at Progressive

In other news, insider Maribel Pumarejo sold 739 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $203.25, for a total transaction of $150,201.75. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CIO Jonathan S. Bauer sold 2,266 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $203.05, for a total transaction of $460,111.30. Following the transaction, the executive owned 26,250 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,330,062.50. This trade represents a 7.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders have sold 11,687 shares of company stock valued at $2,413,044. 0.32% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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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