Hsbc Holdings PLC Raises Stock Holdings in Primerica, Inc. (NYSE:PRI)

Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its stake in Primerica, Inc. (NYSE:PRI - Free Report) by 272.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,265 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 3,119 shares during the quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC's holdings in Primerica were worth $1,155,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Stifel Financial Corp raised its stake in Primerica by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 64,283 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $17,448,000 after buying an additional 299 shares in the last quarter. Mirabella Financial Services LLP bought a new position in shares of Primerica in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,622,000. MetLife Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Primerica by 7.5% during the fourth quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 18,818 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $5,108,000 after purchasing an additional 1,321 shares in the last quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S purchased a new stake in Primerica in the fourth quarter worth $7,792,000. Finally, Brant Point Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Primerica in the fourth quarter worth $7,057,000. 90.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Primerica

In other news, President Peter W. Schneider sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $282.90, for a total value of $565,800.00. Following the transaction, the president now owns 13,301 shares in the company, valued at $3,762,852.90. This represents a 13.07 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Glenn J. Williams sold 3,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $281.74, for a total transaction of $845,220.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 33,322 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,388,140.28. This trade represents a 8.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 5,234 shares of company stock worth $1,476,575 over the last three months. 0.61% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Primerica Stock Performance

Shares of PRI traded up $2.62 on Wednesday, hitting $266.24. 196,151 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 158,033. Primerica, Inc. has a one year low of $211.54 and a one year high of $307.91. The company has a market capitalization of $8.81 billion, a PE ratio of 19.36 and a beta of 1.02. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $270.83 and a 200 day simple moving average of $280.33.

Primerica (NYSE:PRI - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The financial services provider reported $5.02 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.77 by $0.25. Primerica had a return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 15.14%. On average, equities analysts expect that Primerica, Inc. will post 20.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Primerica Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st were issued a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.56%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 21st. This is an increase from Primerica's previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. Primerica's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.25%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently commented on PRI shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on shares of Primerica from $320.00 to $315.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on shares of Primerica in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $311.00 price objective on the stock. StockNews.com lowered shares of Primerica from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Primerica from $313.00 to $304.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $309.14.

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.