Globe Life (NYSE:GL) Reaches New 52-Week High – What’s Next?

Globe Life Inc. (NYSE:GL)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $131.41 and last traded at $130.65, with a volume of 57668 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $129.90.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Globe Life Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $10.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.00 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $123.76 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $113.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.05 and a current ratio of 0.05.

Globe Life (NYSE:GL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $3.14 earnings per share 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 analysts forecast that Globe Life Inc. will post 13.87 EPS for the current 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 0.82%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 3rd. This is a positive change from Globe Life’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. Globe Life’s payout ratio is currently 9.04%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Mark A. Blinn sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.23, for a total value of $339,690.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,122 shares in the company, valued at $579,964.06. This trade represents a 36.94 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Frank M. Svoboda sold 11,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $122.31, for a total transaction of $1,345,410.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 18,948 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,317,529.88. The trade was a 36.73 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 61,338 shares of company stock worth $7,239,630 over the last 90 days. 1.51% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its holdings in 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 in the last quarter. Albion Financial Group UT purchased a new position in shares of Globe Life in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. bought a new position in shares of Globe Life during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Avalon Trust Co purchased a new position in Globe Life during the fourth quarter valued at $41,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Globe Life by 32.7% in the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 365 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.61% of the company’s stock.

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.