Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Acquires 76,435 Shares of The Progressive Corporation $PGR

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in The Progressive Corporation (NYSE:PGR) by 7.3% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 1,122,053 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 76,435 shares during the quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Progressive were worth $299,431,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Progressive by 1.2% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 54,022,956 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $15,289,037,000 after purchasing an additional 622,590 shares during the period. GQG Partners LLC lifted its position in Progressive by 61.4% in the first quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 8,346,133 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,362,039,000 after buying an additional 3,174,632 shares during the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its stake in Progressive by 15.2% during the first quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 8,263,157 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,338,556,000 after buying an additional 1,091,828 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its position in Progressive by 6.6% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 6,380,134 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,805,642,000 after acquiring an additional 396,567 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen LLC bought a new position in Progressive during the first quarter valued at $1,473,180,000. 85.34% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Progressive Trading Up 3.6%

PGR opened at $217.16 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $233.53 and its two-hundred day moving average is $252.14. The company has a market capitalization of $127.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.91, a PEG ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 0.29. The Progressive Corporation has a 52 week low of $199.90 and a 52 week high of $292.99.

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 15th. The insurance provider reported $4.45 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.04 by ($0.59). The firm had revenue of $21.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $21.64 billion. Progressive had a return on equity of 33.88% and a net margin of 12.57%.During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.58 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that The Progressive Corporation will post 14.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Progressive in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Morgan Stanley set a $214.00 target price on Progressive and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on Progressive from $276.00 to $245.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 27th. Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded Progressive to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Progressive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, September 21st. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $269.90.

Insider Activity at Progressive

In other news, insider Lori A. Niederst sold 8,063 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.18, for a total transaction of $2,017,201.34. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 39,040 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,767,027.20. This trade represents a 17.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider John Jo Murphy sold 2,218 shares of Progressive stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.78, for a total transaction of $556,230.04. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 45,724 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,466,664.72. The trade was a 4.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 58,500 shares of company stock worth $14,430,089 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

About Progressive

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.