Premier, Inc. (NASDAQ:PINC) Given Consensus Rating of “Hold” by Brokerages

Premier, Inc. (NASDAQ:PINC) has been given an average recommendation of “Hold” by the nine research firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating. The average twelve-month price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $21.36.

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on PINC shares. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their price objective on shares of Premier from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on Premier from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. StockNews.com cut Premier from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on Premier from $20.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th.

Premier Stock Down 1.1 %

PINC opened at $22.40 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $21.91 and its 200-day moving average is $20.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.47 and a beta of 0.43. Premier has a 52-week low of $17.95 and a 52-week high of $23.56.

Premier (NASDAQ:PINC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 5th. The company reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.25 by $0.09. Premier had a net margin of 11.41% and a return on equity of 10.74%. The firm had revenue of $248.14 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $232.85 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.50 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Premier will post 1.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Premier Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 15th. Investors of record on Saturday, March 1st will be paid a $0.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.75%. Premier’s payout ratio is 61.77%.

Insider Activity at Premier

In other news, COO Leigh Anderson sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, December 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.88, for a total transaction of $437,600.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 111,707 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,444,149.16. This represents a 15.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Helen M. Boudreau sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.42, for a total value of $53,550.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 20,668 shares in the company, valued at $442,708.56. The trade was a 10.79 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 59,425 shares of company stock worth $1,320,242. 0.96% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Premier

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PINC. Brooklyn Investment Group raised its position in Premier by 61,750.0% in the 4th quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 1,237 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 1,235 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Premier by 137.6% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,347 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 780 shares during the period. Keystone Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Premier during the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in shares of Premier during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $39,000. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its stake in Premier by 28.0% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 2,041 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 446 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 74.41% of the company’s stock.

About Premier

Premier, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a healthcare improvement company in the United States. It operates in two segments, Supply Chain Services and Performance Services. The Supply Chain Services segment offers its members with an access to a range of products and services, including medical and surgical products, pharmaceuticals, laboratory supplies, capital equipment, information technology, facilities and construction, and food and nutritional products, as well as purchased services, such as clinical engineering and workforce solutions.