Globe Life Inc. $GL Stock Purchased by Russell Investments Group Ltd.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its stake in Globe Life Inc. (NYSE:GL) by 17.6% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 400,616 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 59,985 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd.’s holdings in Globe Life were worth $66,368,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GL. Fulcrum Asset Management LLP acquired a new position in Globe Life during the third quarter worth $33,000. Johnson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Globe Life in the 2nd quarter worth $39,000. Jacobi Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Globe Life in the 3rd quarter worth $50,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC increased its stake in shares of Globe Life by 94.6% in the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 327 shares of the company’s stock worth $54,000 after acquiring an additional 159 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assetmark Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Globe Life by 42.0% during the 2nd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 426 shares of the company’s stock worth $76,000 after acquiring an additional 126 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.61% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on GL shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on shares of Globe Life from $192.00 to $190.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Globe Life from $193.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 15th. Piper Sandler cut shares of Globe Life from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $200.00 to $165.00 in a research report on Friday, October 23rd. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Globe Life from $208.00 to $197.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 5th. Finally, Raymond James Financial set a $208.00 target price on shares of Globe Life and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $183.91.

Globe Life Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of NYSE:GL traded up $0.44 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $160.55. 360,621 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 641,584. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $165.66 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $160.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.07 and a quick ratio of 0.07. The stock has a market cap of $12.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.74 and a beta of 0.47. Globe Life Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $129.21 and a fifty-two week high of $191.55.

Globe Life (NYSE:GL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 21st. The company reported $4.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.90 by ($0.06). Globe Life had a net margin of 18.89% and a return on equity of 19.51%. The company had revenue of $1.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.56 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $4.81 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Globe Life Inc. will post 15.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Globe Life Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 8th will be given a dividend of $0.33 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 8th. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Globe Life’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 8.83%.

Globe Life announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Monday, August 10th that permits the company to buy back $2.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to buy up to 17.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Share repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Globe Life

In other news, EVP Michael Majors sold 14,377 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.48, for a total value of $2,220,958.96. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 39,141 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,046,501.68. The trade was a 26.86% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Robert Hensley sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.07, for a total transaction of $1,700,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 12,384 shares in the company, valued at $2,106,146.88. This trade represents a 44.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 2.11% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Globe Life Profile

Globe Life Inc. is a U.S.-based insurance holding company that provides life and supplemental health insurance through its subsidiaries. Its products include term and whole life insurance, Medicare Supplement insurance, and supplemental health coverage such as accident, cancer, and critical illness policies. The company distributes insurance through a mix of exclusive agents, independent agents, and direct marketing. Its operating companies include Globe Life and Accident Insurance Company, American Income Life, Liberty National, Family Heritage Life, and United American.