Premier, Inc. (NASDAQ:PINC) Position Increased by Gladius Capital Management LP

Gladius Capital Management LP raised its position in Premier, Inc. (NASDAQ:PINC) by 262.1% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 13,122 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 9,498 shares during the quarter. Gladius Capital Management LP’s holdings in Premier were worth $262,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of PINC. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Premier by 384.3% during the 2nd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 6,311,089 shares of the company’s stock valued at $117,828,000 after buying an additional 5,007,851 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in Premier by 14.9% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,951,043 shares of the company’s stock valued at $111,105,000 after acquiring an additional 773,207 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in Premier by 60.4% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,051,578 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,303,000 after acquiring an additional 772,392 shares in the last quarter. Invenomic Capital Management LP increased its stake in shares of Premier by 37.7% during the 1st quarter. Invenomic Capital Management LP now owns 1,027,437 shares of the company’s stock worth $22,706,000 after purchasing an additional 281,131 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Natixis raised its holdings in shares of Premier by 162.3% during the 1st quarter. Natixis now owns 452,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,989,000 after purchasing an additional 279,700 shares in the last quarter. 74.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Premier

In other news, General Counsel David L. Klatsky sold 1,319 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.96, for a total value of $26,327.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel now owns 102,467 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,045,241.32. This represents a 1.27 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Michael J. Alkire sold 17,415 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.16, for a total transaction of $403,331.40. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 520,728 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,060,060.48. The trade was a 3.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 142,856 shares of company stock worth $2,941,879. Company insiders own 0.96% of the company’s stock.

Premier Stock Down 1.2 %

PINC opened at $22.48 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $20.36 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $19.79. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 10.11 and a beta of 0.40. Premier, Inc. has a 12-month low of $17.95 and a 12-month high of $23.43.

Premier (NASDAQ:PINC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 5th. The company reported $0.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.25 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $248.14 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $232.85 million. Premier had a net margin of 11.41% and a return on equity of 10.74%. Premier’s quarterly revenue was down 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.50 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Premier, Inc. will post 1.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Premier Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Sunday, December 1st will be given a dividend of $0.21 per share. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.74%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. Premier’s dividend payout ratio is currently 61.77%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently issued reports on PINC. Robert W. Baird lifted 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. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their price target on Premier from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. StockNews.com downgraded Premier from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Barclays upped their target price on Premier from $20.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Benchmark lowered 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, Premier has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $21.36.

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.