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

Shares of Premier, Inc. (NASDAQ:PINC) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the seven research firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation. The average 12-month target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $20.17.

A number of equities analysts have commented on PINC shares. StockNews.com lowered shares of Premier from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on shares of Premier from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Premier from $20.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on shares of Premier from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group reduced their target price on shares of Premier from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, COO Leigh Anderson sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.88, for a total transaction of $437,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 111,707 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,444,149.16. The trade was a 15.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Michael J. Alkire sold 18,374 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.80, for a total transaction of $400,553.20. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 502,354 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,951,317.20. This trade represents a 3.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 42,010 shares of company stock valued at $916,911 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.96% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Premier

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of PINC. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new stake in Premier in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $4,293,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp increased its stake in Premier by 20.1% in the fourth quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 28,236 shares of the company’s stock valued at $599,000 after purchasing an additional 4,730 shares in the last quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. increased its stake in Premier by 20.9% in the fourth quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. now owns 13,238 shares of the company’s stock valued at $281,000 after purchasing an additional 2,286 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its stake in Premier by 16.5% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 384,851 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,159,000 after purchasing an additional 54,392 shares in the last quarter. Finally, WBI Investments LLC bought a new stake in Premier in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $454,000. 74.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Premier Stock Up 0.8 %

NASDAQ:PINC opened at $18.18 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $1.66 billion, a PE ratio of -181.78 and a beta of 0.43. Premier has a 12 month low of $17.69 and a 12 month high of $23.56. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $20.62 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $20.72.

Premier Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 15th. Investors of record on Saturday, March 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.21 per share. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.62%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. Premier’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -840.00%.

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.