Primerica (NYSE:PRI) Shares Down 0.2% – Should You Sell?

Primerica, Inc. (NYSE:PRI) shares traded down 0.2% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $290.83 and last traded at $292.58. 9,184 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 93% from the average session volume of 128,286 shares. The stock had previously closed at $293.12.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PRI has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. TD Cowen lifted their price target 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. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on shares of Primerica from $320.00 to $315.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 10th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Primerica from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on shares of Primerica from $313.00 to $300.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Primerica from $300.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $304.14.

Primerica Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $9.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.32 and a beta of 1.11. The company’s 50 day moving average is $285.42 and its 200 day moving average is $270.64.

Primerica (NYSE:PRI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The financial services provider reported $5.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 firm had revenue of $774.13 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $745.25 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $4.28 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Primerica, Inc. will post 19.75 EPS for the current year.

Primerica Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.23%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 21st. Primerica’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.50%.

Primerica declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Thursday, November 14th that allows the company to repurchase $450.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to repurchase up to 4.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Primerica

In related news, CEO Glenn J. Williams sold 3,000 shares of the firm’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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 36,322 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,942,728.94. This trade represents a 7.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Primerica

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. CIBC Asset Management Inc increased its holdings in Primerica by 3.5% during the third quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 1,054 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $279,000 after buying an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Creative Planning increased its holdings in Primerica by 0.7% during the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 6,083 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,613,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Primerica by 0.7% during the third quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,840 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,549,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in Primerica by 56.8% during the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 149 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SkyView Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Primerica by 1.0% during the second quarter. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC now owns 6,271 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,484,000 after buying an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other 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.