Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 36,189 Shares of Primerica, Inc. (NYSE:PRI)

Principal Financial Group Inc. decreased its stake in shares of Primerica, Inc. (NYSE:PRI) by 31.6% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 78,415 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 36,189 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.23% of Primerica worth $20,792,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new stake in Primerica during the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Primerica during the third quarter valued at $31,000. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its holdings in Primerica by 85.9% in the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 145 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in Primerica by 56.8% in the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 149 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares during the period. Finally, Quarry LP boosted its position in Primerica by 629.2% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 350 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $93,000 after purchasing an additional 302 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.88% of the company’s stock.

Primerica Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:PRI opened at $271.72 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $9.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.76 and a beta of 1.09. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $287.35 and a 200 day moving average price of $264.07. Primerica, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $184.76 and a fifty-two week high of $307.91.

Primerica (NYSE:PRI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The financial services provider reported $5.68 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.81 by $0.87. Primerica had a net margin of 14.95% and a return on equity of 30.93%. The business had revenue of $774.13 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $745.25 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $4.28 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Primerica, Inc. will post 19.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Primerica Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 21st were paid a $0.90 dividend. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.32%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 21st. Primerica’s payout ratio is 27.50%.

Primerica announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Thursday, November 14th that allows the company to repurchase $450.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to repurchase up to 4.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on PRI shares. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on shares of Primerica from $313.00 to $300.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Primerica from $300.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. TD Cowen raised 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. Finally, StockNews.com raised Primerica from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $296.33.

Insider Transactions at Primerica

In related news, CEO Glenn J. Williams sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $301.27, for a total transaction of $903,810.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 36,322 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,942,728.94. This represents a 7.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.61% of the company’s stock.

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.