Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Lowers Primerica (NYSE:PRI) Price Target to $315.00

Primerica (NYSE:PRI - Free Report) had its price objective lowered by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $320.00 to $315.00 in a report published on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a market perform rating on the financial services provider's stock.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on PRI. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Primerica from $313.00 to $304.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 28th. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on Primerica in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. They set a "market perform" rating and a $311.00 price objective on the stock. Piper Sandler cut their price target on Primerica from $313.00 to $300.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Primerica from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $309.14.

Primerica Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE PRI traded up $4.62 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $256.58. The company had a trading volume of 67,049 shares, compared to its average volume of 168,684. The firm has a market cap of $8.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.66 and a beta of 1.03. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $279.38 and its 200 day simple moving average is $282.05. Primerica has a one year low of $184.76 and a one year high of $307.91.

Primerica (NYSE:PRI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The financial services provider reported $5.03 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.81 by $0.22. Primerica had a net margin of 15.14% and a return on equity of 31.11%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Primerica will post 20.6 EPS for the current year.

Primerica Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st were given a dividend of $1.04 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.62%. This is a boost from Primerica's previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. Primerica's dividend payout ratio is 30.25%.

Insider Transactions at Primerica

In related news, insider Nicholas Adam Jendusa sold 234 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.15, for a total transaction of $65,555.10. Following the transaction, the insider now directly 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 sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, President Peter W. Schneider sold 2,000 shares of Primerica stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $282.90, for a total transaction of $565,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the president now directly owns 13,301 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,762,852.90. This trade represents a 13.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 5,234 shares of company stock valued at $1,476,575. Corporate insiders own 0.85% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Primerica

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Mariner LLC raised its position in Primerica by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 2,611 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $709,000 after buying an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Dana Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in 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 last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc grew its position in Primerica by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 1,108 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $301,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. lifted its position in shares of Primerica by 3.9% during the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,518 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $412,000 after buying an additional 57 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Everhart Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Primerica by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Everhart Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,676 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $726,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.88% of the company's stock.

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.