Primerica, Inc. $PRI Shares Purchased by Comerica Bank

Key Points

• Comerica Bank increased its holdings in Primerica, Inc. by 8.0% during Q1, owning about 0.10% of the company, valued at approximately $9.41 million.
• Wall Street analysts have mixed views on Primerica with two analysts rating it as a Buy and five as a Hold, while the current consensus price target is approximately $315.29.
• Primerica announced a quarterly dividend of $1.04, with a yield of 1.6% and a payout ratio of 20.55%, payable on September 15th.

Comerica Bank grew its holdings in shares of Primerica, Inc. (NYSE:PRI - Free Report) by 8.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 33,069 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 2,463 shares during the quarter. Comerica Bank owned approximately 0.10% of Primerica worth $9,409,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Assetmark Inc. boosted its stake in Primerica by 17.1% during the 1st quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,778 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $506,000 after purchasing an additional 260 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC boosted its stake in Primerica by 21.7% during the 1st quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 5,201 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,480,000 after purchasing an additional 927 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG boosted its stake in Primerica by 224.3% during the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 13,367 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,628,000 after purchasing an additional 9,245 shares during the last quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH acquired a new stake in Primerica during the 1st quarter worth $2,683,000. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in shares of Primerica by 11.7% in the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,385 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $919,000 after acquiring an additional 354 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.88% of the company's stock.

Primerica Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE PRI traded up $0.62 during trading on Monday, reaching $269.11. The stock had a trading volume of 157,205 shares, compared to its average volume of 158,109. Primerica, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $230.98 and a fifty-two week high of $307.91. The business's 50-day moving average price is $266.53 and its 200-day moving average price is $269.14. The company has a market cap of $8.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.30 and a beta of 1.00.

Primerica (NYSE:PRI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $5.46 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $5.18 by $0.28. Primerica had a return on equity of 32.42% and a net margin of 21.48%.The business had revenue of $796.02 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $790.99 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $4.71 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Primerica, Inc. will post 20.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Primerica Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Glenn J. Williams sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $262.20, for a total value of $655,500.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 36,392 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,541,982.40. This trade represents a 6.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.61% of the company's stock.

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.