Premier (NASDAQ:PINC) Given New $21.00 Price Target at Canaccord Genuity Group

Premier (NASDAQ:PINC) had its price objective increased by Canaccord Genuity Group from $19.00 to $21.00 in a research note published on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. Canaccord Genuity Group currently has a hold rating on the stock.

A number of other analysts have also commented on the company. Benchmark lowered Premier from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, August 26th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Premier from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday. Barclays increased their price objective on Premier from $20.00 to $24.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday. StockNews.com lowered Premier from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Premier from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, September 9th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $22.44.

Premier Stock Performance

Shares of PINC opened at $23.34 on Wednesday. Premier has a 52-week low of $17.95 and a 52-week high of $23.43. The firm has a market cap of $2.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.66, a PEG ratio of 9.43 and a beta of 0.40. The business’s fifty day moving average is $20.02 and its 200-day moving average is $19.70.

Premier (NASDAQ:PINC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 20th. The company reported $0.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.44 by $0.25. Premier had a net margin of 8.88% and a return on equity of 11.69%. The company had revenue of $350.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $308.88 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.70 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Premier will post 1.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Premier Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared 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 3.60%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 29th. Premier’s payout ratio is 81.55%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Premier

In other news, CEO Michael J. Alkire sold 19,362 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.83, for a total value of $403,310.46. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 578,143 shares in the company, valued at $12,042,718.69. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other Premier news, CEO Michael J. Alkire sold 18,736 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.05, for a total value of $375,656.80. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 559,407 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,216,110.35. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Michael J. Alkire sold 19,362 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.83, for a total transaction of $403,310.46. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 578,143 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,042,718.69. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 135,441 shares of company stock valued at $2,738,548. Corporate insiders own 0.96% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Premier

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp bought a new position in shares of Premier in the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of Premier by 137.6% in the 3rd 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. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Premier by 50.0% in the 1st quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,951 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 650 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its position in shares of Premier by 265.2% during the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 2,140 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 1,554 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Premier during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $47,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.41% of the company’s stock.

Premier Company Profile

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.