Primerica (NYSE:PRI) Shares Down 0.4% - Time to Sell?

Primerica, Inc. (NYSE:PRI - Get Free Report) shares traded down 0.4% on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $279.67 and last traded at $280.11. 29,369 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 79% from the average session volume of 138,271 shares. The stock had previously closed at $281.18.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on PRI shares. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on shares of Primerica in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They set a "market perform" rating and a $311.00 target price for the company. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on Primerica from $313.00 to $300.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. TD Cowen increased their target price on Primerica from $314.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. StockNews.com lowered Primerica from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of Primerica from $315.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Primerica currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $311.14.

Primerica Stock Down 2.0 %

The stock's fifty day moving average price is $281.95 and its 200 day moving average price is $276.58. The stock has a market cap of $9.12 billion, a PE ratio of 19.88 and a beta of 1.11.

Primerica (NYSE:PRI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The financial services provider reported $5.03 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.81 by $0.22. Primerica had a net margin of 15.14% and a return on equity of 31.11%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Primerica, Inc. will post 20.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Primerica Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st will be issued a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 21st. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.52%. This is a positive change from Primerica's previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. Primerica's payout ratio is presently 26.18%.

Primerica declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Thursday, November 14th that permits the company to repurchase $450.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to reacquire up to 4.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Primerica

In other news, CEO Glenn J. Williams sold 3,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $281.74, for a total transaction of $845,220.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 33,322 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,388,140.28. The trade was a 8.26 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 0.85% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Primerica

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. CIBC Asset Management Inc grew its holdings in Primerica by 3.5% during the third quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 1,054 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $279,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the period. Mariner LLC grew its holdings in Primerica by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 2,611 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $709,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the period. Creative Planning grew its holdings in Primerica by 0.7% during the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 6,083 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,613,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the period. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Primerica by 0.7% during the third quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,840 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,549,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the period. Finally, Dana Investment Advisors Inc. grew 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 valued at $1,012,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the period. 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.