Northern Trust Corp Sells 9,116 Shares of Primerica, Inc. $PRI

Key Points

• Northern Trust Corp reduced its stake in Primerica, Inc. by 2.6% during Q1, owning approximately 1.02% of the company, worth $96.15 million after selling 9,116 shares.
• Analysts have mixed views on Primerica's stock, with Jefferies reducing its price target from $293.00 to $283.00, while Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised theirs from $315.00 to $320.00.
• Primerica recently declared a quarterly $1.04 dividend, with an annualized amount of $4.16 and a yield of 1.5%, set to be paid on September 15th.

Northern Trust Corp trimmed its holdings in shares of Primerica, Inc. (NYSE:PRI - Free Report) by 2.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 337,924 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 9,116 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp owned approximately 1.02% of Primerica worth $96,150,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Mariner LLC raised its holdings in Primerica by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 2,611 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $709,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP purchased a new position in Primerica in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,230,000. Stifel Financial Corp raised its holdings in Primerica by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 64,283 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $17,448,000 after acquiring an additional 299 shares during the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its holdings in Primerica by 272.2% in the 4th quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 4,265 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,155,000 after acquiring an additional 3,119 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pinebridge Investments L.P. raised its holdings in Primerica by 18.5% in the 4th quarter. Pinebridge Investments L.P. now owns 17,729 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $4,812,000 after acquiring an additional 2,770 shares during the last quarter. 90.88% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Primerica Stock Up 0.2%

PRI stock traded up $0.62 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $269.11. The company had a trading volume of 157,205 shares, compared to its average volume of 157,668. The company has a market capitalization of $8.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.30 and a beta of 0.99. Primerica, Inc. has a 12-month low of $230.98 and a 12-month high of $307.91. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $266.49 and a 200 day moving average price of $269.40.

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

Primerica Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 22nd will be given a dividend of $1.04 per share. 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 is currently 20.55%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Glenn J. Williams sold 2,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $262.20, for a total transaction 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 represents a 6.43% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.61% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on PRI. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Primerica from $292.00 to $308.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, August 18th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on shares of Primerica from $293.00 to $283.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 11th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price 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 investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $315.29.

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.