Creative Planning Acquires 3,345 Shares of Premier Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:PFC)

Creative Planning boosted its holdings in Premier Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:PFC) by 8.2% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 43,921 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,345 shares during the quarter. Creative Planning owned about 0.12% of Premier Financial worth $899,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Premier Financial in the second quarter valued at approximately $219,000. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Premier Financial by 66.0% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 326,667 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,684,000 after acquiring an additional 129,913 shares during the period. Evergreen Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Premier Financial by 8.6% in the second quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 17,912 shares of the company’s stock valued at $366,000 after acquiring an additional 1,414 shares during the period. Magnetar Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Premier Financial in the second quarter valued at approximately $212,000. Finally, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans grew its stake in Premier Financial by 27.8% in the second quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 78,797 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,613,000 after acquiring an additional 17,162 shares during the period. 66.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

Premier Financial Stock Up 3.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ:PFC opened at $23.75 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $851.20 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.80 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. Premier Financial Corp. has a 12-month low of $15.79 and a 12-month high of $26.40. The business’s 50 day moving average is $23.84 and its 200 day moving average is $21.81.

Premier Financial (NASDAQ:PFC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The company reported $0.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.51 by ($0.06). The company had revenue of $110.55 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $63.20 million. Premier Financial had a net margin of 18.07% and a return on equity of 8.19%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.68 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Premier Financial Corp. will post 1.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Premier Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 16th. Investors of record on Friday, August 9th were given a dividend of $0.31 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 9th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.22%. Premier Financial’s payout ratio is 56.36%.

Insider Activity at Premier Financial

In related news, Director Donald P. Hileman sold 1,500 shares of Premier Financial stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.64, for a total transaction of $35,460.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 28,311 shares in the company, valued at approximately $669,272.04. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, EVP Dennis E. Rose, Jr. sold 2,000 shares of Premier Financial stock in a transaction on Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.01, for a total transaction of $50,020.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 38,114 shares in the company, valued at approximately $953,231.14. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Donald P. Hileman sold 1,500 shares of Premier Financial stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.64, for a total value of $35,460.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 28,311 shares in the company, valued at $669,272.04. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.22% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.