Swiss National Bank Trims Stock Holdings in Primerica, Inc. (NYSE:PRI)

Swiss National Bank trimmed its position in Primerica, Inc. (NYSE:PRI) by 1.0% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 66,500 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 700 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank’s holdings in Primerica were worth $18,049,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PRI. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Primerica in the fourth quarter worth $34,191,000. SVB Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Primerica in the fourth quarter worth $10,703,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC bought a new stake in Primerica in the fourth quarter worth $8,767,000. Amundi bought a new stake in Primerica in the fourth quarter worth $7,868,000. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Primerica by 3.9% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 696,839 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $184,807,000 after acquiring an additional 25,951 shares in the last quarter. 90.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Primerica

In other Primerica news, insider Nicholas Adam Jendusa sold 234 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.15, for a total value of $65,555.10. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 200 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $56,030. This represents a 53.92 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, President Peter W. Schneider sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were 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 directly owns 13,301 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,762,852.90. This represents a 13.07 % 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. 0.85% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Primerica Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:PRI opened at $287.94 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $9.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.94 and a beta of 1.12. Primerica, Inc. has a 1 year low of $184.76 and a 1 year high of $307.91. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $285.15 and its 200-day moving average price is $280.19.

Primerica (NYSE:PRI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The financial services provider reported $5.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.81 by $0.22. Primerica had a return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 15.14%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Primerica, Inc. will post 20.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Primerica Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st were issued a $1.04 dividend. This is an increase from Primerica’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.44%. Primerica’s dividend payout ratio is currently 30.25%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on PRI. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on Primerica from $315.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. StockNews.com downgraded Primerica from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on Primerica in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $311.00 target price on the stock. 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, TD Cowen boosted their target price on Primerica from $314.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Primerica currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $309.86.

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.