Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC Acquires 55,295 Shares of Primerica, Inc. (NYSE:PRI)

Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC increased its stake in Primerica, Inc. (NYSE:PRI - Free Report) by 2,508.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 57,499 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 55,295 shares during the period. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC owned about 0.17% of Primerica worth $15,606,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of PRI. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Primerica during the fourth quarter worth about $34,191,000. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Primerica by 254.5% in the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 116,271 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $31,558,000 after buying an additional 83,477 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Primerica by 11.9% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 779,760 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $211,691,000 after buying an additional 82,921 shares during the last quarter. FIL Ltd increased its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 60,565 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in shares of Primerica by 15.6% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 347,040 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $94,194,000 after acquiring an additional 46,935 shares in the last quarter. 90.88% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Primerica Stock Performance

Shares of Primerica stock traded down $3.45 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $268.55. The company had a trading volume of 110,912 shares, compared to its average volume of 157,151. Primerica, Inc. has a 52-week low of $219.52 and a 52-week high of $307.91. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.53 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a 50 day moving average of $269.75 and a 200 day moving average of $280.13.

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

Primerica Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be given a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.55%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 22nd. Primerica's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.25%.

Insider Activity at Primerica

In other Primerica 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 directly owns 33,322 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,388,140.28. The trade was a 8.26 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, President Peter W. Schneider sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was 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 approximately $3,762,852.90. This trade represents a 13.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 5,234 shares of company stock valued at $1,476,575. 0.61% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.