American Century Companies Inc. Buys 15,841 Shares of Primerica, Inc. $PRI

Key Points

• American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in Primerica, Inc. by 20.1%, acquiring an additional 15,841 shares to own a total of 94,670 shares valued at approximately $26.9 million as of the last quarter.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $1.04 per share, translating to an annualized yield of 1.5% and a payout ratio of 20.55%.
• While analysts have mixed ratings, the consensus target price for Primerica stands at $315.29, with two analysts rating it as a Buy and five as a Hold.

American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in Primerica, Inc. (NYSE:PRI - Free Report) by 20.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 94,670 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 15,841 shares during the quarter. American Century Companies Inc. owned approximately 0.29% of Primerica worth $26,936,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Primerica by 1.1% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,493,650 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $994,048,000 after buying an additional 37,994 shares during the last quarter. Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. raised its holdings in Primerica by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. now owns 1,288,473 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $349,717,000 after purchasing an additional 21,208 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in Primerica by 2.7% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 611,437 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $173,963,000 after purchasing an additional 16,350 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new position in Primerica during the 1st quarter worth approximately $156,019,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Primerica by 39,199.5% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 443,298 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $126,132,000 after purchasing an additional 442,170 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.88% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Primerica

In related news, CEO Glenn J. Williams sold 2,500 shares of Primerica stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $262.20, for a total value of $655,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 36,392 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,541,982.40. This trade represents a 6.43% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.61% of the company's stock.

Primerica Stock Performance

Shares of PRI stock traded up $3.25 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $271.24. 72,412 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 168,887. The firm has a market cap of $8.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.40 and a beta of 0.99. Primerica, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $230.98 and a fifty-two week high of $307.91. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $265.96 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $269.72.

Primerica (NYSE:PRI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $5.46 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.18 by $0.28. Primerica had a net margin of 21.48% and a return on equity of 32.42%. The company had revenue of $796.02 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $790.99 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $4.71 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Primerica, Inc. will post 20.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Primerica Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Investors of record on Friday, August 22nd will be given a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 22nd. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. Primerica's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.55%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Primerica from $292.00 to $308.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, August 18th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on shares of Primerica from $293.00 to $283.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 11th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on shares of Primerica from $315.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Monday, August 11th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $315.29.

Primerica Company 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.