Primerica (NYSE:PRI) Stock Price Down 0.9% – What’s Next?

Primerica, Inc. (NYSE:PRI) dropped 0.9% on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $274.18 and last traded at $275.16. Approximately 17,678 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 88% from the average daily volume of 141,556 shares. The stock had previously closed at $277.72.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Primerica from $313.00 to $304.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Piper Sandler decreased their target price on shares of Primerica from $313.00 to $300.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on shares of Primerica from $315.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of Primerica in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They set a “market perform” rating and a $311.00 price target for the company. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Primerica from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $309.86.

Primerica Stock Up 0.7 %

The stock has a market cap of $9.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.37 and a beta of 1.12. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $284.41 and its two-hundred day moving average is $279.37.

Primerica (NYSE:PRI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The financial services provider reported $5.03 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.81 by $0.22. Primerica had a net margin of 15.14% and a return on equity of 31.11%. Analysts anticipate that Primerica, Inc. will post 20.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Primerica Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be given a $1.04 dividend. This is a positive change from Primerica’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 21st. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.49%. Primerica’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.25%.

Primerica declared that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Thursday, November 14th that permits the company to repurchase $450.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to reacquire up to 4.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Nicholas Adam Jendusa sold 234 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.15, for a total transaction of $65,555.10. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 200 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $56,030. The trade was a 53.92 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, President Peter W. Schneider sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $282.90, for a total transaction of $565,800.00. Following the transaction, the president now directly owns 13,301 shares in the company, valued at $3,762,852.90. This trade represents a 13.07 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 5,234 shares of company stock valued at $1,476,575 over the last 90 days. 0.85% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Primerica

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in Primerica during the fourth quarter worth $2,921,000. Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. increased its position in Primerica by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. now owns 1,288,473 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $349,717,000 after acquiring an additional 21,208 shares during the period. Vise Technologies Inc. bought a new position in Primerica during the fourth quarter worth $368,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its position in Primerica by 9.0% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 142,679 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $38,726,000 after acquiring an additional 11,737 shares during the period. Finally, Voloridge Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Primerica by 527.1% during the fourth quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 42,816 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $11,621,000 after buying an additional 35,988 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.88% of the company’s stock.

Primerica Company Profile

Primerica, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides financial products and services to middle-income households in the United States and Canada. The company operates in four segments: Term Life Insurance; Investment and Savings Products; Senior Health; and Corporate and Other Distributed Products.