Primerica, Inc. (NYSE:PRI) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Hold" by Brokerages

Primerica, Inc. (NYSE:PRI - Get Free Report) has received an average recommendation of "Hold" from the seven analysts that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and two have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $309.14.

PRI has been the topic of several research analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on Primerica in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. They set a "market perform" rating and a $311.00 price target on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on Primerica from $320.00 to $315.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. StockNews.com lowered Primerica from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Primerica from $313.00 to $304.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 28th.

Primerica Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:PRI traded down $0.01 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $263.55. 109,488 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 157,880. Primerica has a 1 year low of $211.54 and a 1 year high of $307.91. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $270.83 and its 200 day simple moving average is $280.33. The firm has a market cap of $8.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.17 and a beta of 1.02.

Primerica (NYSE:PRI - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The financial services provider reported $5.03 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.81 by $0.22. Primerica had a return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 15.14%. On average, research analysts forecast that Primerica will post 20.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Primerica Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors 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 yield of 1.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. This is a positive change from Primerica's previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. Primerica's dividend payout ratio is currently 30.25%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Primerica

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Primerica

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of PRI. Barclays PLC increased its position in shares of Primerica by 108.1% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 20,471 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $5,428,000 after buying an additional 10,635 shares in the last quarter. Sylvest Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Primerica during the 4th quarter valued at about $543,000. Oak Thistle LLC increased its holdings in Primerica by 64.9% during the 4th quarter. Oak Thistle LLC now owns 4,936 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,340,000 after acquiring an additional 1,943 shares in the last quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System raised its position in Primerica by 59.4% during the fourth quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 111,720 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $30,323,000 after acquiring an additional 41,612 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Primerica by 10.7% in the fourth quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 120,011 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $32,573,000 after purchasing an additional 11,612 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.88% of the company's stock.

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.