Ritholtz Wealth Management Increases Stock Holdings in Primerica, Inc. $PRI

Ritholtz Wealth Management increased its position in Primerica, Inc. (NYSE:PRI) by 255.5% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 17,228 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 12,382 shares during the quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management’s holdings in Primerica were worth $4,782,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Atria Investments Inc raised its holdings in shares of Primerica by 27.6% in the 2nd quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 12,650 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,462,000 after acquiring an additional 2,740 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB bought a new position in shares of Primerica in the third quarter worth approximately $51,004,000. Aviva PLC purchased a new stake in Primerica in the second quarter valued at approximately $514,000. Entropy Technologies LP bought a new position in shares of Primerica in the 2nd quarter worth $876,000. Finally, Moran Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Primerica during the 3rd quarter valued at $2,121,000. Institutional investors own 90.88% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on PRI shares. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Primerica in a report on Monday, December 29th. Morgan Stanley set a $292.00 price objective on Primerica in a report on Monday, December 15th. Piper Sandler set a $292.00 target price on Primerica and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 7th. Zacks Research cut shares of Primerica from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, December 8th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Primerica from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $292.00 to $318.00 in a report on Tuesday, September 23rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $300.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Primerica

In other Primerica news, President Peter W. Schneider sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.30, for a total value of $510,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the president directly owned 7,301 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,863,945.30. This represents a 21.50% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Joel M. Babbit sold 700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.00, for a total transaction of $178,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 8,400 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,142,000. This represents a 7.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 5,200 shares of company stock valued at $1,338,225. 0.61% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Primerica Stock Down 0.7%

Shares of PRI opened at $266.02 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $258.85 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $264.58. Primerica, Inc. has a twelve month low of $230.98 and a twelve month high of $298.75. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.23 and a beta of 0.90.

Primerica (NYSE:PRI) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The financial services provider reported $6.33 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.52 by $0.81. The company had revenue of $838.88 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $817.81 million. Primerica had a net margin of 22.36% and a return on equity of 31.75%. Primerica’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $4.83 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Primerica, Inc. will post 20.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Primerica Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 21st were paid a dividend of $1.04 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 21st. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.6%. Primerica’s payout ratio is 19.12%.

Primerica announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Wednesday, November 19th that permits the company to repurchase $475.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to purchase up to 5.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

About Primerica

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.