Railway Pension Investments Ltd Purchases 5,700 Shares of Globe Life Inc. (NYSE:GL)

Railway Pension Investments Ltd raised its position in shares of Globe Life Inc. (NYSE:GL) by 42.2% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 19,200 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 5,700 shares during the quarter. Railway Pension Investments Ltd’s holdings in Globe Life were worth $2,234,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of GL. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Globe Life by 3.9% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 11,255,091 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,309,755,000 after purchasing an additional 425,993 shares in the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in Globe Life by 7.5% in the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 101,607 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,824,000 after acquiring an additional 7,100 shares in the last quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama bought a new position in Globe Life in the fourth quarter worth approximately $2,297,000. Quadrature Capital Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Globe Life by 69.2% during the fourth quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd now owns 38,785 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,724,000 after acquiring an additional 15,862 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System raised its position in shares of Globe Life by 5.2% during the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 26,061 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,172,000 after purchasing an additional 1,295 shares during the period. 81.61% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on GL shares. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Globe Life from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Raymond James restated a “strong-buy” rating on shares of Globe Life in a report on Tuesday, May 21st. StockNews.com downgraded Globe Life from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, April 20th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Globe Life from $85.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, June 28th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Globe Life from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 26th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $106.33.

Insider Transactions at Globe Life

In other Globe Life news, Director Mary E. Thigpen purchased 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, July 26th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $90.20 per share, with a total value of $270,600.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 15,605 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,407,571. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, CFO Thomas Peter Kalmbach acquired 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 17th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $84.43 per share, for a total transaction of $42,215.00. Following the acquisition, the chief financial officer now owns 18,080 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,526,494.40. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Mary E. Thigpen acquired 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 26th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $90.20 per share, for a total transaction of $270,600.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 15,605 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,407,571. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have bought 8,000 shares of company stock valued at $687,880. 1.51% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Globe Life Price Performance

GL traded down $2.04 during trading on Friday, reaching $90.91. 937,317 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 915,633. Globe Life Inc. has a 12-month low of $38.95 and a 12-month high of $132.00. The company’s 50-day moving average is $84.51 and its two-hundred day moving average is $98.46. The company has a quick ratio of 0.05, a current ratio of 0.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The company has a market cap of $8.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.68 and a beta of 0.80.

Globe Life (NYSE:GL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The company reported $2.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.90 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $1.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.45 billion. Globe Life had a net margin of 18.47% and a return on equity of 22.53%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.61 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Globe Life Inc. will post 11.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Globe Life Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 5th were given a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 5th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.06%. Globe Life’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 9.17%.

Globe Life Profile

Globe Life Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides various life and supplemental health insurance products, and annuities to lower middle- and middle-income families in the United States. The company operates in four segments: Life Insurance, Supplemental Health Insurance, Annuities, and Investments.