Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC Buys 117,242 Shares of Premier, Inc. (NASDAQ:PINC)

Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in Premier, Inc. (NASDAQ:PINC) by 79.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 264,696 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 117,242 shares during the quarter. Premier accounts for approximately 3.2% of Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest holding. Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC owned about 0.22% of Premier worth $5,850,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Global Retirement Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Premier by 153.3% during the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 1,583 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 958 shares during the last quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Premier by 71.7% during the fourth quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,660 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 693 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Premier by 141.2% during the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,980 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 1,159 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp grew its stake in shares of Premier by 53.0% in the third quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 2,138 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 741 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Janiczek Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Premier by 246.5% during the 4th quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,533 shares of the company’s stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 1,802 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.41% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, General Counsel David L. Klatsky sold 13,339 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.55, for a total transaction of $247,438.45. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel now owns 92,001 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,706,618.55. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Premier news, COO Leigh Anderson sold 20,000 shares of Premier stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.41, for a total transaction of $388,200.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 183,928 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,570,042.48. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, General Counsel David L. Klatsky sold 13,339 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.55, for a total transaction of $247,438.45. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel now directly owns 92,001 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,706,618.55. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 69,075 shares of company stock worth $1,328,050. Company insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Premier Stock Performance

Shares of PINC stock traded up $0.08 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $18.18. The company had a trading volume of 1,559,685 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,321,251. The firm has a market cap of $1.91 billion, a PE ratio of 28.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.09 and a beta of 0.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.93. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $19.78 and a 200-day moving average price of $21.02. Premier, Inc. has a one year low of $17.95 and a one year high of $28.30.

Premier (NASDAQ:PINC) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 7th. The company reported $0.49 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.42 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $342.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $312.92 million. Premier had a return on equity of 11.71% and a net margin of 6.01%. Sell-side analysts predict that Premier, Inc. will post 1.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Premier Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Saturday, June 1st were issued a dividend of $0.21 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 31st. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.62%. Premier’s dividend payout ratio is currently 131.25%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently weighed in on PINC shares. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on shares of Premier from $25.00 to $22.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 8th. SVB Leerink started coverage on shares of Premier in a research report on Monday, February 26th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $22.50 price target on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Premier from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 9th. Canaccord Genuity Group reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $21.00 target price (down previously from $27.00) on shares of Premier in a report on Wednesday, May 8th. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered their target price on Premier from $24.00 to $22.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $23.50.

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.