Davis R M Inc. Has $236,000 Stock Position in Globe Life Inc. (NYSE:GL)

Davis R M Inc. lowered its position in shares of Globe Life Inc. (NYSE:GL) by 41.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,120 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,519 shares during the quarter. Davis R M Inc.’s holdings in Globe Life were worth $236,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Private Trust Co. NA grew its holdings in Globe Life by 12.5% during the 4th quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 754 shares of the company’s stock worth $84,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. grew its holdings in Globe Life by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. now owns 2,293 shares of the company’s stock worth $256,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares during the last quarter. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board grew its holdings in Globe Life by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board now owns 4,233 shares of the company’s stock worth $472,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC grew its holdings in Globe Life by 4.5% during the 4th quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 2,803 shares of the company’s stock worth $313,000 after acquiring an additional 121 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SRS Capital Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Globe Life by 18.8% during the 4th quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 784 shares of the company’s stock worth $87,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.61% of the company’s stock.

Globe Life Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:GL opened at $122.20 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $10.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.23 and a beta of 0.77. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $120.57 and its 200 day simple moving average is $111.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.05 and a quick ratio of 0.05. Globe Life Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $38.95 and a fifty-two week high of $131.39.

Globe Life (NYSE:GL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $3.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.12 by $0.02. Globe Life had a net margin of 18.53% and a return on equity of 22.32%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Globe Life Inc. will post 13.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Globe Life Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be given a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.88%. This is an increase from Globe Life’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 3rd. Globe Life’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 9.04%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on GL. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of Globe Life from $137.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Globe Life from $126.00 to $141.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of Globe Life from $107.00 to $114.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Evercore ISI raised shares of Globe Life from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their target price for the company from $132.00 to $143.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets started coverage on shares of Globe Life in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $114.00 target price on the stock. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $135.60.

Insider Activity at Globe Life

In other Globe Life news, CEO Frank M. Svoboda sold 13,448 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $112.56, for a total transaction of $1,513,706.88. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 18,948 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,132,786.88. This trade represents a 41.51 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO James Matthew Darden sold 24,890 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.52, for a total transaction of $3,024,632.80. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 38,973 shares in the company, valued at $4,735,998.96. This trade represents a 38.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 61,338 shares of company stock worth $7,239,630 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.51% of the company’s stock.

About Globe Life

Globe Life Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides various life and supplemental health insurance products, and annuities to lower middle- and middle-income families in the United States. The company operates in four segments: Life Insurance, Supplemental Health Insurance, Annuities, and Investments.