Premier (NASDAQ:PINC) Cut to “Hold” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Premier (NASDAQ:PINC) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note published on Tuesday.

Several other research analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group cut their target price on shares of Premier from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on Premier from $22.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Premier from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, September 9th. Finally, Benchmark cut shares of Premier from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $22.44.

Premier Price Performance

PINC opened at $23.08 on Tuesday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $20.08 and a 200-day moving average price of $19.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 9.43 and a beta of 0.40. Premier has a one year low of $17.95 and a one year high of $23.43.

Premier (NASDAQ:PINC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The company reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.25 by $0.09. Premier had a net margin of 8.88% and a return on equity of 11.69%. The firm had revenue of $248.14 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $232.85 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.50 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Premier will post 1.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Premier Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Sunday, December 1st will be issued a $0.21 dividend. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.64%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. Premier’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 81.55%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Michael J. Alkire sold 19,362 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.83, for a total value of $403,310.46. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 578,143 shares in the company, valued at $12,042,718.69. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Michael J. Alkire sold 19,362 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.83, for a total value of $403,310.46. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 578,143 shares in the company, valued at $12,042,718.69. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Andy Brailo sold 4,390 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.51, for a total transaction of $90,038.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 104,410 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,141,449.10. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 135,441 shares of company stock worth $2,738,548. Insiders own 0.96% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Premier

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Premier in the first quarter worth $1,686,000. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its stake in shares of Premier by 1,496.5% during the 1st quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 94,734 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,094,000 after purchasing an additional 88,800 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE increased its position in shares of Premier by 8,726.8% during the 1st quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 374,434 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,275,000 after purchasing an additional 370,192 shares during the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Premier in the 1st quarter worth approximately $418,000. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its holdings in shares of Premier by 10.5% in the first quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 215,636 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,742,000 after buying an additional 20,419 shares during the last quarter. 74.41% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.