Primerica (NYSE:PRI) Stock Price Up 1.1% – Here’s Why

Primerica, Inc. (NYSE:PRI)’s share price rose 1.1% during trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $292.52 and last traded at $292.02. Approximately 8,560 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 94% from the average daily volume of 133,551 shares. The stock had previously closed at $288.74.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on PRI. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on Primerica from $300.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of Primerica from $314.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. StockNews.com raised Primerica from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on Primerica from $313.00 to $300.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on Primerica from $320.00 to $315.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Primerica currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $303.00.

Primerica Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $9.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.23 and a beta of 1.11. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $286.04 and a 200 day moving average price of $268.83.

Primerica (NYSE:PRI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The financial services provider reported $5.68 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.81 by $0.87. Primerica had a net margin of 14.95% and a return on equity of 30.93%. The company had revenue of $774.13 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $745.25 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $4.28 earnings per share. Primerica’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Primerica, Inc. will post 19.55 EPS for the current year.

Primerica Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 21st were given a dividend of $0.90 per share. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.24%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 21st. Primerica’s payout ratio is 27.50%.

Primerica announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Thursday, November 14th that authorizes the company to buyback $450.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to reacquire up to 4.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other Primerica news, CEO Glenn J. Williams sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $301.27, for a total transaction of $903,810.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 36,322 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,942,728.94. This represents a 7.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.61% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Primerica

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of PRI. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new stake in Primerica in the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Prospera Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Primerica in the third quarter worth approximately $31,000. UMB Bank n.a. raised its position in Primerica by 85.9% during the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 145 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Primerica by 56.8% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 149 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the period. Finally, Quarry LP grew its stake in Primerica by 629.2% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 350 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $93,000 after purchasing an additional 302 shares during the period. 90.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.