Morgan Stanley Increases Globe Life (NYSE:GL) Price Target to $126.00

Globe Life (NYSE:GL) had its price objective boosted by Morgan Stanley from $125.00 to $126.00 in a report released on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an equal weight rating on the stock.

A number of other research firms have also recently weighed in on GL. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of Globe Life from $107.00 to $114.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Globe Life from $126.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Globe Life from $137.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Globe Life from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $132.00 to $143.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets began coverage on shares of Globe Life in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $114.00 price target on the stock. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $135.60.

Globe Life Trading Up 2.8 %

GL stock opened at $127.69 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.05, a current ratio of 0.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. Globe Life has a twelve month low of $38.95 and a twelve month high of $129.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.68 and a beta of 0.81. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $118.29 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $110.23.

Globe Life (NYSE:GL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $3.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.12 by $0.02. Globe Life had a net margin of 18.53% and a return on equity of 22.32%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Globe Life will post 13.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Globe Life Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be paid a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 3rd. This is a positive change from Globe Life’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.85%. Globe Life’s dividend payout ratio is 8.03%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Globe Life news, Director Mark A. Blinn sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.23, for a total transaction of $339,690.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 5,122 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $579,964.06. This represents a 36.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO James Matthew Darden sold 24,890 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.52, for a total transaction of $3,024,632.80. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 38,973 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,735,998.96. The trade was a 38.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 75,678 shares of company stock valued at $8,799,822 over the last three months. 1.51% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Globe Life

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of GL. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Globe Life during the fourth quarter valued at about $112,454,000. Nuance Investments LLC increased its holdings in shares of Globe Life by 155.6% during the third quarter. Nuance Investments LLC now owns 1,138,978 shares of the company’s stock valued at $120,629,000 after acquiring an additional 693,346 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Globe Life during the fourth quarter valued at about $61,238,000. Swedbank AB acquired a new position in shares of Globe Life during the fourth quarter valued at about $52,414,000. Finally, Freestone Grove Partners LP acquired a new position in shares of Globe Life during the fourth quarter valued at about $52,178,000. 81.61% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Globe Life Company 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.