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Progressive (PGR) Increases Yet Falls Behind Market: What Investors Need to Know

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The latest trading session saw Progressive (PGR - Free Report) ending at $237.78, denoting a +0.81% adjustment from its last day's close. This change lagged the S&P 500's 0.97% gain on the day. Meanwhile, the Dow experienced a rise of 0.58%, and the technology-dominated Nasdaq saw an increase of 1.39%.

The insurer's shares have seen an increase of 7.54% over the last month, surpassing the Finance sector's loss of 0.47% and the S&P 500's loss of 1.85%.

Analysts and investors alike will be keeping a close eye on the performance of Progressive in its upcoming earnings disclosure. It is anticipated that the company will report an EPS of $2.69, marking a 28.71% rise compared to the same quarter of the previous year. Alongside, our most recent consensus estimate is anticipating revenue of $19.05 billion, indicating a 21.24% upward movement from the same quarter last year.

In terms of the entire fiscal year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates predict earnings of $12.16 per share and a revenue of $73.59 billion, indicating changes of +99.02% and +19.17%, respectively, from the former year.

Furthermore, it would be beneficial for investors to monitor any recent shifts in analyst projections for Progressive. Such recent modifications usually signify the changing landscape of near-term business trends. With this in mind, we can consider positive estimate revisions a sign of optimism about the company's business outlook.

Our research shows that these estimate changes are directly correlated with near-term stock prices. Investors can capitalize on this by using the Zacks Rank. This model considers these estimate changes and provides a simple, actionable rating system.

The Zacks Rank system, stretching from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), has a noteworthy track record of outperforming, validated by third-party audits, with stocks rated #1 producing an average annual return of +25% since the year 1988. The Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 1.93% higher within the past month. Progressive currently has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

In terms of valuation, Progressive is currently trading at a Forward P/E ratio of 19.4. This represents a premium compared to its industry's average Forward P/E of 12.75.

It is also worth noting that PGR currently has a PEG ratio of 0.79. The PEG ratio bears resemblance to the frequently used P/E ratio, but this parameter also includes the company's expected earnings growth trajectory. The average PEG ratio for the Insurance - Property and Casualty industry stood at 1.46 at the close of the market yesterday.

The Insurance - Property and Casualty industry is part of the Finance sector. This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 24, putting it in the top 10% of all 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.

Don't forget to use Zacks.com to keep track of all these stock-moving metrics, and others, in the upcoming trading sessions.


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