HighTower Advisors LLC Increases Stock Holdings in Globe Life Inc. (NYSE:GL)

HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Globe Life Inc. (NYSE:GL) by 1.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 22,009 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 406 shares during the quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC’s holdings in Globe Life were worth $2,454,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Globe Life by 388.0% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 244 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 194 shares during the period. Albion Financial Group UT bought a new stake in shares of Globe Life during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. True Wealth Design LLC bought a new stake in shares of Globe Life during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $59,000. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Globe Life by 3,157.9% during the 4th quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 619 shares of the company’s stock worth $69,000 after acquiring an additional 600 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA lifted its stake in shares of Globe Life by 67.5% during the 3rd quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 670 shares of the company’s stock worth $71,000 after acquiring an additional 270 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.61% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Globe Life

In related news, CMO Jennifer Allison Haworth sold 9,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $112.91, for a total transaction of $1,016,190.00. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 13,485 shares in the company, valued at $1,522,591.35. The trade was a 40.03 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Frank M. Svoboda sold 11,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $122.31, for a total value of $1,345,410.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 18,948 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,317,529.88. This trade represents a 36.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 61,338 shares of company stock valued at $7,239,630. Corporate insiders own 1.51% of the company’s stock.

Globe Life Trading Down 1.4 %

GL opened at $126.86 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $10.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.62 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a current ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 0.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. Globe Life Inc. has a 12 month low of $38.95 and a 12 month high of $131.39. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $122.53 and a 200-day moving average price of $112.98.

Globe Life (NYSE:GL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $3.14 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.12 by $0.02. Globe Life had a return on equity of 22.32% and a net margin of 18.53%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Globe Life Inc. will post 13.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Globe Life Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be given a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.85%. This is a positive change from Globe Life’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 3rd. Globe Life’s payout ratio is presently 9.04%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on GL shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on Globe Life from $137.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Globe Life from $107.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Globe Life from $126.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Evercore ISI raised Globe Life from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $132.00 to $143.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Globe Life from $125.00 to $126.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $135.60.

Globe Life Company Profile

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.