Inspire Investing LLC Acquires New Holdings in Primerica, Inc. $PRI

Key Points

• Inspire Investing LLC acquired 2,700 shares of Primerica, Inc. valued at approximately $768,000 during the 1st quarter, highlighting increased institutional interest in the financial services provider.
• Primerica's CEO Glenn J. Williams sold 2,500 shares for about $655,500, reducing his ownership stake by 6.43%.
• The company's stock has an average rating of "Hold" from analysts, with a price target averaging around $315.29, following a recent earnings report that beat consensus estimates.

Inspire Investing LLC bought a new stake in Primerica, Inc. (NYSE:PRI - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 2,700 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $768,000.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. True Wealth Design LLC acquired a new position in shares of Primerica in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Headlands Technologies LLC grew its stake in shares of Primerica by 2,300.0% in the first quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 168 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $48,000 after acquiring an additional 161 shares in the last quarter. Summit Securities Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Primerica in the first quarter worth $64,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Primerica by 105.7% in the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 253 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $72,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Primerica by 205.8% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 263 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $75,000 after acquiring an additional 177 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.88% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Primerica Stock Up 1.0%

Shares of PRI stock traded up $2.66 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $273.61. 32,017 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 170,588. The stock has a market cap of $8.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.52 and a beta of 1.00. Primerica, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $230.98 and a fifty-two week high of $307.91. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $266.42 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $268.56.

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

Primerica Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

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