Martingale Asset Management L P Buys Shares of 940 Primerica, Inc. (NYSE:PRI)

Martingale Asset Management L P purchased a new position in Primerica, Inc. (NYSE:PRI) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 940 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $255,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in PRI. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Primerica during the 4th quarter valued at $34,191,000. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Primerica by 11.9% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 779,760 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $211,691,000 after acquiring an additional 82,921 shares during the period. FIL Ltd boosted its position in Primerica by 85.5% in the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 131,365 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $35,655,000 after purchasing an additional 60,565 shares during the last quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System grew its stake in shares of Primerica by 59.4% during the 4th quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 111,720 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $30,323,000 after purchasing an additional 41,612 shares during the period. Finally, SVB Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Primerica during the 4th quarter valued at about $10,703,000. 90.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Primerica Trading Up 1.3 %

NYSE PRI opened at $251.76 on Monday. Primerica, Inc. has a 12 month low of $184.76 and a 12 month high of $307.91. The stock has a market cap of $8.33 billion, a PE ratio of 18.31 and a beta of 1.03. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $279.38 and its 200 day moving average is $282.05.

Primerica (NYSE:PRI) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The financial services provider reported $5.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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%. On average, analysts forecast that Primerica, Inc. will post 20.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Primerica Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st were issued a $1.04 dividend. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.65%. This is a boost from Primerica’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 21st. Primerica’s payout ratio is 30.25%.

Insider Buying and Selling

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 value of $65,555.10. Following the sale, the insider now owns 200 shares in the company, valued at approximately $56,030. The trade was a 53.92 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, President Peter W. Schneider sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $282.90, for a total transaction of $565,800.00. Following the transaction, the president now owns 13,301 shares of the company’s stock, 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. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 5,234 shares of company stock worth $1,476,575. Corporate insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com lowered shares of Primerica from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on shares of Primerica from $320.00 to $315.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Primerica from $313.00 to $304.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Piper Sandler reduced their price target on Primerica from $313.00 to $300.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on Primerica in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. They set a “market perform” rating and a $311.00 price objective on the stock. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $309.14.

Primerica 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.