Primerica, Inc. (NYSE:PRI) Increases Dividend to $1.04 Per Share

Primerica, Inc. (NYSE:PRI) declared a quarterly dividend on Tuesday, February 11th,Wall Street Journal reports. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be given a dividend of 1.04 per share by the financial services provider on Friday, March 14th. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.49%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 21st. This is a boost from Primerica’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.90.

Primerica has raised its dividend payment by an average of 20.6% annually over the last three years. Primerica has a payout ratio of 15.7% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect Primerica to earn $20.45 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $3.60 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 17.6%.

Primerica Stock Down 4.0 %

Primerica stock traded down $11.49 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $278.65. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 251,359 shares, compared to its average volume of 142,416. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.29 and a beta of 1.11. Primerica has a twelve month low of $184.76 and a twelve month high of $307.91. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $283.06 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $275.43.

Primerica (NYSE:PRI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The financial services provider reported $5.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.81 by $0.22. Primerica had a net margin of 14.95% and a return on equity of 30.93%. Equities analysts expect that Primerica will post 19.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Primerica declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback 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 reacquire up to 4.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have issued reports on PRI shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on shares of Primerica from $320.00 to $315.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 10th. TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of Primerica from $314.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Piper Sandler decreased their price objective on shares of Primerica from $313.00 to $300.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Primerica from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets started coverage on shares of Primerica in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $311.00 price objective for the company. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $304.14.

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.