Premier Financial (NASDAQ:PFC) Sets New 1-Year High – Here’s What Happened

Premier Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:PFC) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $29.51 and last traded at $29.51, with a volume of 1102 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $28.85.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Janney Montgomery Scott restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Premier Financial in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $22.50.

Premier Financial Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.95 and a quick ratio of 0.93. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $25.17 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $23.24. The company has a market cap of $1.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.20 and a beta of 1.25.

Premier Financial (NASDAQ:PFC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The company reported $0.46 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.50 by ($0.04). Premier Financial had a net margin of 16.06% and a return on equity of 7.43%. The firm had revenue of $112.74 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $64.55 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.69 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Premier Financial Corp. will post 2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Premier Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 8th were paid a $0.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.43%. Premier Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 62.94%.

Insider Transactions at Premier Financial

In other news, EVP Dennis E. Rose, Jr. sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.98, for a total transaction of $55,960.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 36,144 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,011,309.12. This represents a 5.24 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 2.22% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of PFC. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in Premier Financial in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Premier Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at $36,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC acquired a new position in Premier Financial during the 2nd quarter worth about $84,000. CWM LLC boosted its holdings in Premier Financial by 296.8% during the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 6,480 shares of the company’s stock valued at $133,000 after acquiring an additional 4,847 shares during the period. Finally, EMC Capital Management grew its position in Premier Financial by 56.9% in the 1st quarter. EMC Capital Management now owns 8,392 shares of the company’s stock valued at $170,000 after acquiring an additional 3,043 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 66.14% of the company’s stock.

About Premier Financial

Premier Financial Corp., through its subsidiaries, provides various banking services. It offers demand, checking, money market, and savings accounts, as well as certificates of deposits and certificates of deposit account registry service; and investment products. The company also provides residential and commercial real estate, commercial, construction, home improvement and home equity, installment, and consumer loans.