Premier (NASDAQ:PINC) Downgraded to Hold at Benchmark

Benchmark downgraded shares of Premier (NASDAQ:PINC) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Monday, MarketBeat Ratings reports.

PINC has been the subject of a number of other reports. Canaccord Genuity Group lowered Premier from a buy rating to a hold rating and dropped their price target for the company from $27.00 to $21.00 in a research report on Wednesday, May 8th. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on Premier from $22.00 to $19.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 21st. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on shares of Premier from $24.00 to $22.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 8th. Canaccord Genuity Group dropped their price objective on shares of Premier from $21.00 to $20.00 and set a hold rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Premier from $23.00 to $21.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 28th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Premier currently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $22.19.

Premier Price Performance

Shares of Premier stock opened at $20.02 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.28, a PEG ratio of 6.62 and a beta of 0.42. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $19.45 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $20.16. Premier has a 12 month low of $17.95 and a 12 month high of $24.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.82.

Premier (NASDAQ:PINC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 20th. The company reported $0.69 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.44 by $0.25. Premier had a return on equity of 11.71% and a net margin of 6.01%. The firm had revenue of $350.30 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $308.88 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.70 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Premier will post 1.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Premier Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Sunday, September 1st will be paid a $0.21 dividend. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.20%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 30th. Premier’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 131.25%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Premier news, General Counsel David L. Klatsky sold 13,339 shares of the company’s 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 transaction, the general counsel now directly owns 92,001 shares in the company, valued at $1,706,618.55. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Premier news, CFO Craig S. Mckasson sold 30,000 shares of Premier stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.00, for a total value of $600,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 288,110 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,762,200. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, General Counsel David L. Klatsky sold 13,339 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.55, for a total transaction of $247,438.45. Following the sale, the general counsel now owns 92,001 shares in the company, valued at $1,706,618.55. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 112,110 shares of company stock valued at $2,218,741. Company insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Premier

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp purchased a new position in Premier in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Premier by 71.7% in the fourth quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,660 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 693 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in Premier by 265.2% during the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 2,140 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 1,554 shares in the last quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Premier by 50.0% during the 1st quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,951 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 650 shares during the period. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC raised its position in Premier by 141.2% in the 4th quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,980 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 1,159 shares in the last quarter. 74.41% of the stock is 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.