Premier, Inc. (NASDAQ:PINC) Receives Average Rating of “Hold” from Brokerages

Premier, Inc. (NASDAQ:PINC) has received an average rating of “Hold” from the nine ratings firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating. The average 1-year price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $21.36.

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

Premier Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:PINC opened at $22.94 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $2.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.87 and a beta of 0.43. The company’s 50-day moving average is $21.89 and its 200 day moving average is $20.83. Premier has a fifty-two week low of $17.95 and a fifty-two week high of $23.56.

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

Premier Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Saturday, March 1st will be issued a $0.21 dividend. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.66%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. Premier’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 61.77%.

Insider Transactions at Premier

In related news, COO Leigh Anderson sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.88, for a total value of $437,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 111,707 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,444,149.16. This represents a 15.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Helen M. Boudreau sold 2,500 shares of Premier stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.42, for a total value of $53,550.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 20,668 shares in the company, valued at approximately $442,708.56. The trade was a 10.79 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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. Company insiders own 0.96% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Premier

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of PINC. Brooklyn Investment Group boosted its position in shares of Premier by 61,750.0% in the 4th quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 1,237 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 1,235 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in Premier by 137.6% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,347 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 780 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in shares of Premier in the third quarter worth $39,000. Quarry LP increased its holdings in shares of Premier by 576.7% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 2,179 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 1,857 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quest Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Premier by 356,500.0% in the 3rd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 3,566 shares of the company’s stock worth $71,000 after purchasing an additional 3,565 shares during the last quarter. 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.