Primerica (NYSE:PRI) Shares Down 0.7% After Insider Selling

Primerica, Inc. (NYSE:PRI - Get Free Report)'s stock price dropped 0.7% during trading on Wednesday after an insider sold shares in the company. The company traded as low as $276.96 and last traded at $279.83. Approximately 13,453 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 90% from the average daily volume of 139,928 shares. The stock had previously closed at $281.70.

Specifically, insider Nicholas Adam Jendusa sold 234 shares of Primerica stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.15, for a total value of $65,555.10. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 200 shares in the company, valued at $56,030. The trade was a 53.92 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PRI has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of Primerica from $314.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on shares of Primerica in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. They set a "market perform" rating and a $311.00 target price for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of Primerica from $315.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Primerica from $313.00 to $304.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Piper Sandler cut their target price on shares of Primerica from $313.00 to $300.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Primerica has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $309.86.

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Primerica Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $9.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.42 and a beta of 1.12. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $283.93 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $279.03.

Primerica (NYSE:PRI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The financial services provider reported $5.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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, analysts forecast that Primerica, Inc. will post 20.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Primerica Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be issued a $1.04 dividend. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.48%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 21st. This is an increase from Primerica's previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. Primerica's payout ratio is 30.25%.

Primerica declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Thursday, November 14th that authorizes the company to repurchase $450.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to buy up to 4.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Primerica

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of PRI. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Primerica in the fourth quarter worth $34,191,000. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Primerica by 254.5% during the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 116,271 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $31,558,000 after purchasing an additional 83,477 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Primerica by 11.9% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 779,760 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $211,691,000 after purchasing an additional 82,921 shares in the last quarter. FIL Ltd raised its stake in Primerica by 85.5% during the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 131,365 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $35,655,000 after purchasing an additional 60,565 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC raised its stake in Primerica by 2,508.8% during the fourth quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC now owns 57,499 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $15,606,000 after purchasing an additional 55,295 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.88% of the company's stock.

About Primerica

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.