Progressive (PGR) closed the most recent trading day at $199.66, moving -1.45% from the previous trading session. The stock trailed the S&P 500, which registered a daily gain of 0.17%. At the same time, the Dow added 0.55%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq gained 0.09%.
Heading into today, shares of the insurer had lost 0.05% over the past month, outpacing the Finance sector's loss of 0.4% and lagging the S&P 500's gain of 4.59%.
The investment community will be paying close attention to the earnings performance of Progressive in its upcoming release. The company's earnings per share (EPS) are projected to be $3.8, reflecting a 22.13% decrease from the same quarter last year. At the same time, our most recent consensus estimate is projecting a revenue of $22.78 billion, reflecting a 5.37% rise from the equivalent quarter last year.
For the annual period, the Zacks Consensus Estimates anticipate earnings of $16.41 per share and a revenue of $92.39 billion, signifying shifts of -10.08% and +6.27%, respectively, from the last year.
It is also important to note the recent changes to analyst estimates for Progressive. Such recent modifications usually signify the changing landscape of near-term business trends. As a result, we can interpret positive estimate revisions as a good sign for the business outlook.
Based on our research, we believe these estimate revisions are directly related to near-term stock moves. To benefit from this, we have developed the Zacks Rank, a proprietary model which takes these estimate changes into account and provides an actionable rating system.
Ranging from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), the Zacks Rank system has a proven, outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks returning an average of +25% annually since 1988. The Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 0.26% higher within the past month. As of now, Progressive holds a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).
From a valuation perspective, Progressive is currently exchanging hands at a Forward P/E ratio of 12.35. This signifies a premium in comparison to the average Forward P/E of 10.94 for its industry.
It is also worth noting that PGR currently has a PEG ratio of 5.85. The PEG ratio bears resemblance to the frequently used P/E ratio, but this parameter also includes the company's expected earnings growth trajectory. By the end of yesterday's trading, the Insurance - Property and Casualty industry had an average PEG ratio of 2.46.
The Insurance - Property and Casualty industry is part of the Finance sector. At present, this industry carries a Zacks Industry Rank of 81, placing it within the top 34% of over 250 industries.
The Zacks Industry Rank is ordered from best to worst in terms of the average Zacks Rank of the individual companies within each of these sectors. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.
Make sure to utilize Zacks.com to follow all of these stock-moving metrics, and more, in the coming trading sessions.
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The Progressive Corporation (PGR): Free Stock Analysis Report
This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).