Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Raises Stock Position in Primerica, Inc. $PRI

Key Points

• Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in Primerica, Inc. by 2.7%, acquiring an additional 16,350 shares during the first quarter, bringing their total to 611,437 shares worth approximately $173.96 million.
• CEO Glenn J. Williams sold 2,500 shares of Primerica stock at an average price of $262.20, reducing his ownership by 6.43% to 36,392 shares.
• Primerica's quarterly earnings surpassed analyst estimates, reporting $5.46 earnings per share against a consensus of $5.18, alongside a revenue increase to $796.02 million.

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Primerica, Inc. (NYSE:PRI - Free Report) by 2.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 611,437 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 16,350 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned 1.85% of Primerica worth $173,963,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Barclays PLC grew its stake in Primerica by 43.4% in the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 29,347 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $7,964,000 after buying an additional 8,876 shares in the last quarter. Mariner LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Primerica by 1.4% during 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 bought a new stake in shares of Primerica during the 4th quarter worth $1,230,000. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board purchased a new position in Primerica in the 4th quarter worth $1,981,000. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC raised its position in Primerica by 7.5% in the 4th quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 18,818 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $5,108,000 after purchasing an additional 1,321 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.88% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related 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 approximately $9,541,982.40. This trade represents a 6.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.61% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently commented on PRI. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective 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. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on shares of Primerica from $315.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Monday, August 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on shares of Primerica from $293.00 to $283.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 11th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $315.29.

Primerica Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE PRI traded up $4.8760 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $269.9860. The stock had a trading volume of 144,979 shares, compared to its average volume of 163,886. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $265.62 and a 200-day moving average of $270.31. The company has a market capitalization of $8.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.34 and a beta of 0.99. Primerica, Inc. has a 12-month low of $230.98 and a 12-month high of $307.91.

Primerica (NYSE:PRI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $5.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $5.18 by $0.28. The firm had revenue of $796.02 million during 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 company's revenue for the quarter was up .3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $4.71 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Primerica, Inc. will post 20.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Primerica Announces Dividend

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

Primerica 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.