Primerica, Inc. $PRI Shares Sold by Swiss National Bank

Swiss National Bank reduced its holdings in Primerica, Inc. (NYSE:PRI) by 2.3% during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 63,200 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,500 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank’s holdings in Primerica were worth $17,296,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Hilltop National Bank bought a new stake in shares of Primerica during the 2nd quarter valued at about $31,000. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. acquired a new position in Primerica in the second quarter valued at approximately $33,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Primerica by 1,714.3% during the second quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 127 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc raised its position in shares of Primerica by 108.5% during the 2nd quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 148 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares during the period. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC raised its position in shares of Primerica by 2,300.0% during the 1st quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 168 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 161 shares during the period. 90.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Primerica Stock Down 0.7%

NYSE:PRI opened at $258.21 on Thursday. Primerica, Inc. has a 52-week low of $230.98 and a 52-week high of $307.91. The firm has a market cap of $8.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.87 and a beta of 0.96. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $265.26 and its 200 day moving average price is $266.75.

Primerica (NYSE:PRI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 5th. The financial services provider reported $6.33 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.52 by $0.81. Primerica had a net margin of 22.36% and a return on equity of 31.75%. The company had revenue of $838.88 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $817.81 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $4.83 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Primerica, Inc. will post 20.6 EPS for the current year.

Primerica Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 21st will be given a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 21st. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.6%. Primerica’s payout ratio is 19.12%.

Primerica announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Wednesday, November 19th that authorizes the company to buyback $475.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to buy up to 5.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets raised Primerica from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $292.00 to $318.00 in a research report on Tuesday, September 23rd. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Primerica from $306.00 to $301.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 17th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on shares of Primerica from $293.00 to $283.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on shares of Primerica from $320.00 to $315.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 11th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Primerica from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Primerica has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $301.80.

Insider Buying and Selling at Primerica

In other news, President Peter W. Schneider sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.30, for a total transaction of $510,600.00. Following the sale, the president directly owned 7,301 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,863,945.30. The trade was a 21.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Glenn J. Williams sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $259.65, for a total value of $649,125.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 33,892 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,800,057.80. This represents a 6.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.61% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Primerica 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.