LRT Capital Management LLC Invests $3.75 Million in Primerica, Inc. (NYSE:PRI)

LRT Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Primerica, Inc. (NYSE:PRI - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 13,800 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $3,746,000. Primerica makes up about 2.9% of LRT Capital Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 5th largest holding.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of PRI. Mariner LLC raised its position in Primerica by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 2,611 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $709,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Dana Investment Advisors Inc. grew its position in Primerica by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Dana Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 3,729 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,012,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc increased its stake in Primerica by 5.1% in the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 1,108 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $301,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Primerica by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,518 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $412,000 after buying an additional 57 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Everhart Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Primerica by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Everhart Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,676 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $726,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.88% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PRI has been the topic of a number of research reports. StockNews.com lowered Primerica from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on Primerica from $320.00 to $315.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Primerica from $313.00 to $304.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets started coverage on Primerica in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. They set a "market perform" rating and a $311.00 price target for the company. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $309.14.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, President Peter W. Schneider sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $282.90, for a total value of $565,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now owns 13,301 shares in the company, valued at $3,762,852.90. This trade represents a 13.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Glenn J. Williams sold 3,000 shares of Primerica stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $281.74, for a total value of $845,220.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 33,322 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,388,140.28. This trade represents a 8.26% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 5,234 shares of company stock valued at $1,476,575. Corporate insiders own 0.61% of the company's stock.

Primerica Stock Up 0.9%

NYSE PRI traded up $2.36 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $275.62. 202,897 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 157,582. The company has a market cap of $9.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.05 and a beta of 1.02. Primerica, Inc. has a 12-month low of $219.52 and a 12-month high of $307.91. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $269.10 and a 200 day moving average of $280.03.

Primerica (NYSE:PRI - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The financial services provider reported $5.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.77 by $0.25. Primerica had a return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 15.14%. The company had revenue of $803.56 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $783.54 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.91 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Primerica, Inc. will post 20.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Primerica Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be issued a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 22nd. Primerica's dividend payout ratio is currently 27.98%.

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.