Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC Has $21.26 Million Stake in The Progressive Corporation $PGR

Key Points

• Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management increased its Progressive stake by 7.0% in the fourth quarter, bringing its holdings to 93,353 shares worth about $21.26 million.
• Progressive reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings of $4.80 per share, topping estimates, though revenue of $22.19 billion came in below consensus. The company also posted strong profitability metrics, including a 12.92% net margin and 33.47% return on equity.
• The insurer announced a quarterly dividend of $0.10 per share, while analysts currently rate the stock a consensus “Hold” with an average price target of $238.11. Insiders also recently sold shares under pre-arranged trading plans.

Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC raised its stake in The Progressive Corporation (NYSE:PGR - Free Report) by 7.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 93,353 shares of the insurance provider's stock after purchasing an additional 6,135 shares during the period. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC's holdings in Progressive were worth $21,258,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of PGR. Bard Associates Inc. bought a new stake in Progressive in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Dagco Inc. bought a new stake in Progressive in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. IFC & Insurance Marketing Inc. bought a new stake in Progressive in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. increased its stake in Progressive by 106.6% in the third quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. now owns 126 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Entrust Financial LLC bought a new stake in Progressive in the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. 85.34% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Progressive Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of PGR stock opened at $202.86 on Monday. The Progressive Corporation has a 52-week low of $189.20 and a 52-week high of $269.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 0.27. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $199.20 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $207.93. The company has a market capitalization of $118.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.31, a PEG ratio of 5.89 and a beta of 0.28.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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. Progressive had a net margin of 12.92% and a return on equity of 33.47%. The business had revenue of $22.19 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $23.51 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $4.37 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that The Progressive Corporation will post 16.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Progressive Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 2nd will be given a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 2nd. Progressive's dividend payout ratio is presently 2.03%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PGR has been the subject of several recent research reports. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on shares of Progressive from $216.00 to $215.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 24th. Bank of America decreased their target price on shares of Progressive from $325.00 to $320.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $208.00 target price on shares of Progressive in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Progressive in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reissued a "market perform" rating and set a $220.00 target price on shares of Progressive in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $238.11.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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 value 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider John Jo Murphy sold 5,916 shares of the company'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 sale, the insider directly owned 41,290 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,258,000. The trade was a 12.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 7,343 shares of company stock valued at $1,470,355. Corporate insiders own 0.32% of the company's stock.

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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