Primerica (NYSE:PRI) Stock Price Up 1.6% – Time to Buy?

Primerica, Inc. (NYSE:PRI)’s stock price rose 1.6% on Monday . The stock traded as high as $292.61 and last traded at $290.05. Approximately 36,107 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 74% from the average daily volume of 141,042 shares. The stock had previously closed at $285.37.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on PRI. TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of Primerica from $314.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Primerica from $313.00 to $304.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 28th. StockNews.com downgraded Primerica from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Piper Sandler cut their target price on Primerica from $313.00 to $300.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on Primerica in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. They set a “market perform” rating and a $311.00 target price on the stock. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $309.86.

Primerica Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $9.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.17 and a beta of 1.12. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $284.60 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $279.81.

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

Primerica Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st were given a dividend of $1.04 per share. This is a positive change from Primerica’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 21st. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.43%. Primerica’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.25%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Glenn J. Williams sold 3,000 shares of Primerica stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $281.74, for a total value of $845,220.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 33,322 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,388,140.28. This trade represents a 8.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, President Peter W. Schneider sold 2,000 shares of Primerica stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $282.90, for a total value of $565,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now owns 13,301 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,762,852.90. This represents a 13.07 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 5,234 shares of company stock worth $1,476,575 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Primerica

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Assetmark Inc. raised its stake in shares of Primerica by 11.8% during the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,461 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $387,000 after acquiring an additional 154 shares in the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP bought a new stake in shares of Primerica during the third quarter valued at approximately $228,000. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Primerica by 1.6% during the third quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 5,430 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,440,000 after acquiring an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its stake in shares of Primerica by 3.5% during the third quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 1,054 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $279,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quest Partners LLC raised its stake in Primerica by 730.6% in the third quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 14,453 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,832,000 after buying an additional 12,713 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.88% of the company’s stock.

About Primerica

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.