Primerica (NYSE:PRI) Trading Up 0.7% – Should You Buy?

Primerica, Inc. (NYSE:PRI)’s share price traded up 0.7% on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $276.03 and last traded at $273.22. 16,556 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 89% from the average session volume of 155,494 shares. The stock had previously closed at $271.42.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Piper Sandler decreased their target price on shares of Primerica from $313.00 to $300.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. StockNews.com raised Primerica from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Truist Financial increased their price objective on Primerica from $300.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Finally, TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Primerica from $314.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $296.33.

Primerica Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $9.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.88 and a beta of 1.09. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $286.41 and a two-hundred day moving average of $265.81.

Primerica (NYSE:PRI) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The financial services provider reported $5.68 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.81 by $0.87. The business had revenue of $774.13 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $745.25 million. Primerica had a net margin of 14.95% and a return on equity of 30.93%. The firm’s revenue was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $4.28 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Primerica, Inc. will post 19.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Primerica Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 21st were given a $0.90 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $3.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.32%. Primerica’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 27.50%.

Primerica declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Thursday, November 14th that allows the company to repurchase $450.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to reacquire up to 4.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Primerica

In other news, CEO Glenn J. Williams sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $301.27, for a total value of $903,810.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 36,322 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,942,728.94. This represents a 7.63 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.85% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Primerica

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new stake in Primerica during the third quarter worth about $31,000. Prospera Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Primerica during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. UMB Bank n.a. increased its holdings in Primerica by 85.9% during the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 145 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its position in Primerica by 56.8% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 149 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Strategic Financial Concepts LLC acquired a new position in Primerica in the second quarter worth $71,000. 90.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.