Primerica (NYSE:PRI) Stock Price Down 0% – Here’s What Happened

Primerica, Inc. (NYSE:PRI)’s share price traded down 0% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $273.98 and last traded at $275.65. 22,770 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 84% from the average session volume of 141,612 shares. The stock had previously closed at $275.67.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PRI has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. StockNews.com cut Primerica from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. 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 report on Friday, February 28th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective 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 started coverage on shares of Primerica in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $311.00 target price for the company. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their price target on Primerica from $314.00 to $345.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $309.86.

Primerica Stock Performance

The company has a fifty day moving average price of $284.05 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $279.28. The company has a market cap of $9.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.27 and a beta of 1.12.

Primerica (NYSE:PRI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The financial services provider reported $5.03 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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%. Research analysts anticipate that Primerica, Inc. will post 20.6 EPS for the current year.

Primerica Increases Dividend

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

Primerica declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Thursday, November 14th that permits the company to buyback $450.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to purchase up to 4.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Primerica

In other Primerica news, President Peter W. Schneider sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $282.90, for a total value of $565,800.00. Following the sale, the president now owns 13,301 shares in the company, valued at $3,762,852.90. This represents a 13.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Nicholas Adam Jendusa sold 234 shares of Primerica stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.15, for a total value of $65,555.10. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 200 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $56,030. This represents a 53.92 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 5,234 shares of company stock worth $1,476,575 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Primerica

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. CIBC Asset Management Inc grew its stake in Primerica by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 1,054 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $279,000 after buying an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Mariner LLC grew its position in shares of Primerica by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 2,611 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $709,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 43 shares during the period. Dana Investment Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Primerica by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Dana Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 3,729 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,012,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the period. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in Primerica by 56.8% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 149 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.