Progressive (PGR) Soars 4.1%: Is Further Upside Left in the Stock?

Progressive (PGR) shares rallied 4.1% in the last trading session to close at $224.34. This move can be attributable to notable volume with a higher number of shares being traded than in a typical session. This compares to the stock's 10.8% gain over the past four weeks.Progressive continues to gain on higher premiums, given its compelling product portfolio and strength in Personal auto, contributing about 75% of total premiums. Rate increases, personal auto application increases, improving retention rates, and a strong independent agents' network should drive long-term premium growth and generate steady revenues. Investment in digital transformation should support this strength. Also, it has a reinsurance program to offset some of its losses and a strong financial position overall. This insurer is expected to post quarterly earnings of $4.47 per share in its upcoming report, which represents a year-over-year change of -8.4%. Revenues are expected to be $23.12 billion, up 7% from the year-ago quarter.Earnings and revenue growth expectations certainly give a good sense of the potential strength in a stock, but empirical research shows that trends in earnings estimate revisions are strongly correlated with near-term stock price movements.For Progressive, the consensus EPS estimate for the quarter has been revised 18.9% higher over the last 30 days to the current level. And a positive trend in earnings estimate revision usually translates into price appreciation. So, make sure to keep an eye on PGR going forward to see if this recent jump can turn into more strength down the road. The stock currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today's Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) stocks here >>>>Progressive is a member of the Zacks Insurance - Property and Casualty industry. One other stock in the same industry, Skyward Specialty Insurance (SKWD), finished the last trading session 6.8% higher at $59.19. SKWD has returned 23.7% over the past month.Skyward's consensus EPS estimate for the upcoming report has remained unchanged over the past month at $1.18. Compared to the company's year-ago EPS, this represents a change of +32.6%. Skyward currently boasts a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).Beyond Nvidia: AI's Second Wave Is HereThe AI revolution has already minted millionaires. But the stocks everyone knows about aren't likely to keep delivering the biggest profits. AI’s second wave is moving from infrastructure to implementation and these companies are at the forefront of this transition, positioned to become what Amazon and Google were to the internet era.See Stocks Now >>This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).Zacks Investment ResearchWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks