Bank of Nova Scotia Purchases 18,749 Shares of Globe Life Inc. (NYSE:GL)

Bank of Nova Scotia raised its stake in shares of Globe Life Inc. (NYSE:GL - Free Report) by 21.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 105,966 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 18,749 shares during the period. Bank of Nova Scotia owned 0.13% of Globe Life worth $11,817,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Private Trust Co. NA boosted its holdings in shares of Globe Life by 12.5% in the 4th quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 754 shares of the company's stock valued at $84,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC increased its position in Globe Life by 4.0% in the 4th quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC now owns 2,271 shares of the company's stock valued at $276,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the period. Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. lifted its position in shares of Globe Life by 4.0% in the 4th quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. now owns 2,293 shares of the company's stock valued at $256,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Globe Life by 32.7% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 365 shares of the company's stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Finally, New Mexico Educational Retirement Board increased its position in Globe Life by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board now owns 4,233 shares of the company's stock worth $472,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 81.61% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Globe Life from $141.00 to $140.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Globe Life from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $132.00 to $143.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Globe Life from $136.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on Globe Life from $140.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets started coverage on Globe Life in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. They set a "market perform" rating and a $114.00 price objective on the stock. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $137.55.

Globe Life Stock Performance

Shares of Globe Life stock traded up $0.43 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $123.22. 99,385 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,135,117. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $124.32 and a 200-day simple moving average of $115.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.05 and a quick ratio of 0.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.31 and a beta of 0.60. Globe Life Inc. has a 12-month low of $54.66 and a 12-month high of $133.76.

Globe Life (NYSE:GL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $3.14 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.12 by $0.02. Globe Life had a net margin of 18.53% and a return on equity of 22.32%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Globe Life Inc. will post 13.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Globe Life Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.27 per share. 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 0.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 3rd. Globe Life's payout ratio is presently 9.04%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Globe Life

In other Globe Life news, CEO James Matthew Darden sold 24,890 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.52, for a total transaction of $3,024,632.80. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 38,973 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,735,998.96. This trade represents a 38.97 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Frank M. Svoboda sold 11,000 shares of Globe Life stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $122.31, for a total value of $1,345,410.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 18,948 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,317,529.88. This represents a 36.73 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.51% of the company's stock.

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.