The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Acquires New Holdings in Primerica, Inc. $PRI

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company bought a new position in shares of Primerica, Inc. (NYSE:PRI) in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 20,929 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $5,948,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. C M Bidwell & Associates Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Primerica in the second quarter valued at approximately $29,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Primerica by 176.2% during the first quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 116 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares during the period. Root Financial Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Primerica by 52.6% during the first quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 177 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Primerica by 68.9% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 179 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Steph & Co. lifted its position in Primerica by 38.0% in the 1st quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 196 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. 90.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on PRI shares. Truist Financial reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $320.00 target price (down from $370.00) on shares of Primerica in a report on Thursday, August 27th. TD Cowen boosted their price target on Primerica from $322.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Primerica from $291.00 to $316.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on Primerica from $323.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Primerica from $266.00 to $268.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Primerica presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $315.57.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Amber Lynne Cottle sold 279 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $313.63, for a total value of $87,502.77. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 3,549 shares in the company, valued at $1,113,072.87. This trade represents a 7.29% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Glenn J. Williams sold 1,500 shares of Primerica stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $320.20, for a total value of $480,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 32,196 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,309,159.20. This represents a 4.45% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 5,079 shares of company stock worth $1,551,308 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.63% of the company’s stock.

Primerica Trading Down 1.1%

Shares of PRI opened at $287.14 on Tuesday. Primerica, Inc. has a 12 month low of $230.09 and a 12 month high of $327.28. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $304.92 and a 200 day simple moving average of $279.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.53 and a beta of 0.87.

Primerica (NYSE:PRI) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The financial services provider reported $6.41 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.03 by $0.38. Primerica had a net margin of 23.20% and a return on equity of 32.45%. The business had revenue of $865.07 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $881.00 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $5.46 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Primerica, Inc. will post 25.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Primerica Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 21st will be paid a dividend of $1.20 per share. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 21st. Primerica’s dividend payout ratio is currently 19.28%.

Primerica Company Profile

Primerica, Inc is a financial services company that focuses on delivering term life insurance and investment products to middle-income households in the United States and Canada. The firm operates a network of independent, licensed representatives who provide personalized guidance on coverage needs, retirement planning, and wealth accumulation. Primerica’s core mission is to help clients obtain affordable life insurance protection while also offering a suite of savings and investment solutions designed for long-term financial security.

In addition to term life insurance, Primerica offers a range of financial products and services that include mutual funds, annuities, auto and home insurance through partner carriers, and personal lending solutions such as secured and unsecured loans.