T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. Boosts Stock Holdings in Primerica, Inc. $PRI

Key Points

• T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Primerica, Inc. by 15.0%, acquiring an additional 23,925 shares during the first quarter, bringing its total ownership to 183,699 shares valued at approximately $52.27 million.
• Primerica reported earnings per share (EPS) of $5.46 for the most recent quarter, surpassing expectations by $0.28, with revenue rising by .3% year-over-year to $796.02 million.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $1.04, with an annualized dividend of $4.16 and a yield of 1.5%, set to be paid on September 15th.

T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Primerica, Inc. (NYSE:PRI - Free Report) by 15.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 183,699 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 23,925 shares during the period. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. owned approximately 0.56% of Primerica worth $52,268,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Assetmark Inc. lifted its position in Primerica by 17.1% during the first quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,778 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $506,000 after purchasing an additional 260 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Primerica by 21.7% in the 1st quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 5,201 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,480,000 after buying an additional 927 shares during the last quarter. Two Sigma Securities LLC bought a new position in Primerica in the fourth quarter valued at about $391,000. Deutsche Bank AG increased its position in shares of Primerica by 224.3% during the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 13,367 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,628,000 after purchasing an additional 9,245 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allianz Asset Management GmbH purchased a new position in shares of Primerica in the first quarter worth approximately $2,683,000. Institutional investors own 90.88% of the company's stock.

Primerica Trading Down 0.9%

Primerica stock traded down $2.45 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $267.15. The company had a trading volume of 36,815 shares, compared to its average volume of 168,743. The company's fifty day moving average is $266.16 and its 200-day moving average is $269.73. Primerica, Inc. has a 12-month low of $230.98 and a 12-month high of $307.91. The company has a market capitalization of $8.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.17 and a beta of 0.99.

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

Primerica Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Shareholders 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 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 22nd. Primerica's payout ratio is 20.55%.

Insider Transactions at Primerica

In other news, CEO Glenn J. Williams sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $262.20, for a total value of $655,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 36,392 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,541,982.40. This represents a 6.43% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.61% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PRI has been the topic of several analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target 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. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Primerica from $292.00 to $308.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, August 18th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of Primerica from $315.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Monday, August 11th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Primerica currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $315.29.

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.