Granite Investment Partners LLC Trims Stake in Primerica, Inc. (NYSE:PRI)

Granite Investment Partners LLC lowered its position in shares of Primerica, Inc. (NYSE:PRI - Free Report) by 9.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 13,438 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 1,428 shares during the period. Granite Investment Partners LLC's holdings in Primerica were worth $3,647,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of PRI. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Primerica in the 4th quarter worth $33,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Primerica by 129.1% in the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 126 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Primerica by 116.2% during the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 214 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $58,000 after acquiring an additional 115 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. grew its position in Primerica by 65.5% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 240 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $65,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Primerica by 182.2% in the 4th quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 254 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $69,000 after buying an additional 164 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 90.88% of the company's stock.

Primerica Trading Down 0.4 %

NYSE:PRI traded down $1.06 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $254.05. The company had a trading volume of 105,764 shares, compared to its average volume of 166,719. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $276.24 and its 200-day moving average price is $281.58. The firm has a market cap of $8.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.48 and a beta of 1.03. Primerica, Inc. has a 52 week low of $184.76 and a 52 week high of $307.91.

Primerica (NYSE:PRI - Get Free Report) last posted its 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%. On average, analysts forecast that Primerica, Inc. will post 20.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Primerica Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st were paid a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.64%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 21st. This is a boost from Primerica's previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. Primerica's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.25%.

Insider Activity at Primerica

In other news, President Peter W. Schneider sold 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $282.90, for a total value of $565,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now owns 13,301 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,762,852.90. This represents a 13.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Glenn J. Williams sold 3,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $281.74, for a total transaction of $845,220.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 33,322 shares in the company, valued at $9,388,140.28. This trade represents a 8.26 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 5,234 shares of company stock worth $1,476,575. Corporate insiders own 0.85% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PRI has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Primerica from $313.00 to $304.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 28th. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on shares of Primerica in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $311.00 price objective for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on shares of Primerica from $320.00 to $315.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Primerica from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Primerica presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $309.14.

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.