Primerica, Inc. (NYSE:PRI) to Issue $0.55 Quarterly Dividend

Primerica, Inc. (NYSE:PRI – Get Rating) announced a quarterly dividend on Thursday, May 5th, Zacks reports. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 20th will be paid a dividend of 0.55 per share by the financial services provider on Tuesday, June 14th. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.90%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 19th.

Primerica has increased its dividend payment by an average of 23.4% annually over the last three years and has increased its dividend every year for the last 13 years. Primerica has a payout ratio of 15.1% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect Primerica to earn $14.54 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $2.20 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 15.1%.

Shares of NYSE PRI opened at $115.93 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $131.92 and its 200-day moving average price is $146.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.92 and a beta of 1.35. Primerica has a 12-month low of $114.40 and a 12-month high of $179.51.

Primerica (NYSE:PRI – Get Rating) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 5th. The financial services provider reported $2.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.73 by ($0.62). The business had revenue of $691.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $731.25 million. Primerica had a net margin of 13.78% and a return on equity of 22.89%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.44 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Primerica will post 12.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

In other news, President Peter W. Schneider sold 3,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $130.49, for a total transaction of $456,715.00. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. BlackRock Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Primerica by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 3,313,226 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $507,817,000 after purchasing an additional 29,802 shares in the last quarter. Comerica Bank boosted its stake in shares of Primerica by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 18,631 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,818,000 after purchasing an additional 161 shares in the last quarter. Virtu Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Primerica during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $239,000. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Primerica during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $312,000. Finally, Allianz Asset Management GmbH boosted its stake in shares of Primerica by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 4,290 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $658,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. 90.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on PRI. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Primerica in a research report on Thursday, March 31st. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Primerica in a research report on Friday, January 21st. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $163.00 price objective on the stock. Truist Financial reduced their price objective on shares of Primerica from $197.00 to $187.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 16th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Primerica from $159.00 to $157.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 8th. Finally, Credit Suisse Group reduced their price objective on shares of Primerica from $199.00 to $187.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $167.29.

Primerica announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Monday, February 14th that allows the company to buyback $50.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to repurchase up to 0.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Primerica Company Profile (Get Rating)

Primerica, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides financial products 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. The Term Life Insurance segment underwrites individual term life insurance products.

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