Progressive's quarterly profit rises on higher auto insurance demand
Progressive Corporation PGR | 0.00 |
July 15 (Reuters) - Progressive PGR.N reported a rise in second-quarter profit on Wednesday, driven by robust demand for personal auto insurance policies.
The company's shares, however, were down 4% after combined ratio for June rose to 90% from 86.6% a year earlier. A ratio below 100% means it earned more in premiums than it paid out in claims.
Here are some details:
The Mayfield Village, Ohio-based insurer reported a 5% rise in net premiums written to $21.1 billion in the quarter.
Progressive provides insurance for personal as well as commercial autos and trucks, motorcycles, boats, recreational vehicles and homes.
The insurer's combined ratio was 87.3% for the reported quarter, compared with 86.2% a year ago.
"We still see limited upside in the stock until growth returns, which is highly a function of industry pricing that we do not expect to invert soon given still-strong industry margins", Oppenheimer analyst Michael Phillips said in a note.
The insurer had 38.9 million personal insurance policies in force as of June 30, 8% higher than a year earlier. Its agency auto and direct auto policies were up 8% and 10%, respectively.
The company's net income rose to $3.3 billion, or $5.67 per share, during the quarter, from $3.2 billion, or $5.40 per share, a year earlier.
