The Progressive Corporation $PGR Shares Acquired by Pacer Advisors Inc.

Key Points

• Pacer Advisors increased its stake in Progressive by 17.6% in the fourth quarter, bringing its holdings to 55,506 shares valued at about $12.64 million.
• Progressive reported a strong May performance, with earnings up 36% year over year thanks to higher premiums, investment income, and better underwriting results. The company also recently beat quarterly EPS expectations, though revenue came in below estimates.
• Insiders Steven Broz and John Jo Murphy both sold shares in pre-arranged 10b5-1 transactions, while analysts remain mixed overall with a Hold consensus and an average price target of $237.58.

Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in The Progressive Corporation (NYSE:PGR - Free Report) by 17.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 55,506 shares of the insurance provider's stock after buying an additional 8,298 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Progressive were worth $12,640,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bard Associates Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Progressive during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Dagco Inc. bought a new position in shares of Progressive in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. IFC & Insurance Marketing Inc. bought a new position in shares of Progressive in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Progressive by 106.6% during the third quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. now owns 126 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares during the period. Finally, Entrust Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Progressive during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.34% of the company's stock.

Progressive News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Progressive this week:

• Positive Sentiment: May results showed stronger earnings momentum, with higher premiums, investment income, and underwriting performance helping drive a 36% year-over-year earnings increase. Progressive's May Earnings Increase Y/Y on Higher Investment Income
• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America kept a Buy rating on Progressive despite trimming its price target, which still implies meaningful upside from current levels. Progressive price target lowered by Bank of America Corporation
• Positive Sentiment: Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised its price target for Progressive, signaling continued confidence in the company’s outlook. Progressive price target raised by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods
• Neutral Sentiment: Progressive is getting attention from investors and appears on undervalued-stock screens, but these are more sentiment-driven than company-specific catalysts. 5 Most Undervalued NYSE Stocks to Invest In
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts remain split on Progressive, with conflicting views highlighting uncertainty around valuation and future earnings durability. Analysts Have Conflicting Sentiments on These Financial Companies: Progressive (PGR) and Open Lending (LPRO)

Insider Transactions at Progressive

In other Progressive news, insider Steven Broz sold 1,157 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total transaction of $231,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 28,668 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,733,600. This represents a 3.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider John Jo Murphy sold 5,916 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total transaction of $1,183,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 41,290 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,258,000. The trade was a 12.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Company insiders own 0.32% of the company's stock.

Progressive Stock Performance

PGR opened at $204.42 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $119.45 billion, a PE ratio of 10.39, a P/E/G ratio of 5.88 and a beta of 0.28. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $200.01 and a 200-day simple moving average of $207.23. The Progressive Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $189.20 and a fifty-two week high of $267.92.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 15th. The insurance provider reported $4.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.67 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $22.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $23.51 billion. Progressive had a return on equity of 33.47% and a net margin of 12.92%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 6.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $4.37 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that The Progressive Corporation will post 16.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Progressive Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 2nd will be paid a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on PGR. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Progressive from $205.00 to $190.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. Argus upgraded Progressive to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $225.00 price objective on shares of Progressive in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Bank of America cut their price objective on Progressive from $331.00 to $313.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on Progressive from $208.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Thursday. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Progressive has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $237.58.

About Progressive

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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