Comerica Bank Increases Stock Position in Primerica, Inc. (NYSE:PRI)

Comerica Bank grew its stake in shares of Primerica, Inc. (NYSE:PRI - Free Report) by 4.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 30,606 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 1,303 shares during the quarter. Comerica Bank owned 0.09% of Primerica worth $8,307,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Barclays PLC increased its holdings in Primerica by 108.1% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 20,471 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $5,428,000 after purchasing an additional 10,635 shares during the period. Sylvest Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Primerica during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $543,000. Oak Thistle LLC lifted its stake in Primerica by 64.9% in the fourth quarter. Oak Thistle LLC now owns 4,936 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,340,000 after acquiring an additional 1,943 shares during the period. California Public Employees Retirement System boosted its holdings in Primerica by 59.4% in the fourth quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 111,720 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $30,323,000 after acquiring an additional 41,612 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC increased its position in Primerica by 10.7% during the 4th quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 120,011 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $32,573,000 after purchasing an additional 11,612 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 90.88% of the company's stock.

Primerica Trading Down 0.7 %

PRI traded down $2.02 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $269.98. 34,192 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 156,820. The company has a market capitalization of $8.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.63 and a beta of 1.02. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $270.02 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $280.21. Primerica, Inc. has a 52-week low of $217.56 and a 52-week high of $307.91.

Primerica (NYSE:PRI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The financial services provider reported $5.02 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.77 by $0.25. Primerica had a return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 15.14%. The firm had revenue of $803.56 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $783.54 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.91 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Primerica, Inc. will post 20.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Primerica Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be paid a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.54%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 22nd. Primerica's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.25%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on PRI shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on Primerica from $320.00 to $315.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Primerica from $313.00 to $304.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 28th. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on shares of Primerica in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. They set a "market perform" rating and a $311.00 price objective for the company. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Primerica from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $309.14.

Insider Buying and Selling at Primerica

In other Primerica news, President Peter W. Schneider sold 2,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $282.90, for a total value of $565,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now owns 13,301 shares in the company, valued at $3,762,852.90. The trade was a 13.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Glenn J. Williams sold 3,000 shares of Primerica stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $281.74, for a total value of $845,220.00. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 5,234 shares of company stock worth $1,476,575 in the last ninety days. 0.61% of the stock is owned by 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.