BNP Paribas Financial Markets Cuts Position in Primerica, Inc. (NYSE:PRI)

BNP Paribas Financial Markets lowered its stake in shares of Primerica, Inc. (NYSE:PRI - Free Report) by 20.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 4,584 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 1,166 shares during the quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets' holdings in Primerica were worth $1,244,000 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 stock. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Primerica by 11.9% during the fourth 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 in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in Primerica by 15.6% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 347,040 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $94,194,000 after buying an additional 46,935 shares in the last quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. grew its position in Primerica by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. now owns 230,736 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $62,626,000 after buying an additional 2,905 shares in the last quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. grew its position in Primerica by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 159,774 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $43,366,000 after buying an additional 1,484 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FIL Ltd lifted its stake in Primerica by 85.5% during the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 131,365 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $35,655,000 after purchasing an additional 60,565 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.88% of the company's stock.

Primerica Trading Down 0.7%

NYSE:PRI traded down $1.80 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $266.78. 109,405 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 157,530. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.40 and a beta of 1.02. Primerica, Inc. has a one year low of $219.52 and a one year high of $307.91. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $268.07 and a 200 day simple moving average of $279.77.

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, 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $783.54 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.91 EPS. The business's revenue was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Primerica, Inc. will post 20.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Primerica Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be issued a dividend of $1.04 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 22nd. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.56%. Primerica's payout ratio is currently 27.98%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on PRI shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their target price on Primerica from $320.00 to $315.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Wall Street Zen cut Primerica from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Primerica from $274.00 to $296.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $308.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, President Peter W. Schneider sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the president now directly owns 13,301 shares in the company, valued at $3,762,852.90. This trade represents a 13.07% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Nicholas Adam Jendusa sold 234 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.15, for a total value of $65,555.10. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 200 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $56,030. This represents a 53.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.61% of the company's stock.

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.