Equity Investment Corp Cuts Position in Globe Life Inc. $GL

Key Points

• Equity Investment Corp trimmed its Globe Life stake by 1.4% in the fourth quarter, but still held 810,233 shares valued at about $113.3 million, making GL its 16th-largest position.
• Several large institutional investors added to their positions, including Vanguard, Dimensional Fund Advisors, AQR, Nuveen, and Norges Bank; overall, 81.61% of Globe Life stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutions.
• Analysts remain mostly positive on Globe Life, with an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $174.11; the stock also recently paid a quarterly dividend of $0.33 per share and saw insider selling in recent months.

Equity Investment Corp trimmed its position in shares of Globe Life Inc. (NYSE:GL - Free Report) by 1.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 810,233 shares of the company's stock after selling 11,326 shares during the period. Globe Life comprises about 2.3% of Equity Investment Corp's portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest position. Equity Investment Corp owned 1.02% of Globe Life worth $113,319,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Globe Life by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,090,885 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,411,311,000 after purchasing an additional 86,349 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in Globe Life by 2.9% in the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,076,232 shares of the company's stock valued at $296,841,000 after purchasing an additional 59,353 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Globe Life by 98.6% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,402,690 shares of the company's stock valued at $174,340,000 after purchasing an additional 696,548 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC increased its stake in Globe Life by 20.4% in the fourth quarter. Nuveen LLC now owns 1,374,302 shares of the company's stock valued at $192,210,000 after purchasing an additional 233,145 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Globe Life in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $155,617,000. 81.61% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GL has been the topic of a number of research reports. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Globe Life from $176.00 to $181.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Globe Life from $171.00 to $172.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Truist Financial raised their target price on shares of Globe Life from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated a "moderate buy" rating and set a $168.00 target price on shares of Globe Life in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. Finally, Evercore set a $157.00 target price on shares of Globe Life in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $174.11.

Globe Life Price Performance

Shares of NYSE GL opened at $165.04 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.41 and a beta of 0.49. Globe Life Inc. has a one year low of $116.73 and a one year high of $165.78. The company's fifty day moving average is $152.36 and its two-hundred day moving average is $144.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 0.07 and a current ratio of 0.07.

Globe Life (NYSE:GL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The company reported $3.43 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.46 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $1.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.56 billion. Globe Life had a return on equity of 20.94% and a net margin of 19.38%.Globe Life's revenue for the quarter was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.07 earnings per share. Globe Life has set its FY 2026 guidance at 15.400-15.90 EPS. Analysts forecast that Globe Life Inc. will post 15.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Globe Life Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 6th will be given a dividend of $0.33 per share. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 6th. Globe Life's payout ratio is presently 9.13%.

Insider Activity at Globe Life

In other news, CEO James Matthew Darden sold 4,663 shares of Globe Life stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.88, for a total transaction of $717,542.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 58,451 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,994,439.88. The trade was a 7.39% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Frank M. Svoboda sold 20,000 shares of Globe Life stock in a transaction on Friday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.68, for a total value of $3,133,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 54,020 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,463,853.60. This trade represents a 27.02% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 105,929 shares of company stock valued at $16,382,450 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 2.11% of the company's stock.

Globe Life Profile

Globe Life, traded on the NYSE under the symbol GL, is a U.S.-based insurance holding company that underwrites and distributes a range of life and supplemental health insurance products. Through its subsidiary brands—Globe Life, American Income Life, Liberty National Life, United American Insurance Company and Family Heritage Life—it offers term life, whole life, fixed annuities and supplemental health coverage designed to meet the needs of individuals and families across various socioeconomic segments.

The company's product suite includes low-cost, easy-to-understand life insurance policies, accidental death and dismemberment coverage, hospital indemnity plans and specified disease insurance.

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