Arizona State Retirement System Boosts Holdings in Premier, Inc. (NASDAQ:PINC)

Arizona State Retirement System grew its position in Premier, Inc. (NASDAQ:PINC) by 2.0% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 33,542 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 653 shares during the quarter. Arizona State Retirement System’s holdings in Premier were worth $626,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Premier in the 1st quarter worth $27,000. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake 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 worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 1,554 shares during the last quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Premier by 50.0% during the first quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,951 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 650 shares in the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of 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 during the last quarter. Finally, nVerses Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Premier in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $56,000. 74.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Premier Price Performance

NASDAQ:PINC opened at $20.29 on Monday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $19.93 and a 200-day moving average price of $20.03. Premier, Inc. has a 1-year low of $17.95 and a 1-year high of $23.01. The firm has a market cap of $2.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 9.23 and a beta of 0.40.

Premier (NASDAQ:PINC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 20th. The company reported $0.69 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $308.88 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.70 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Premier, Inc. will post 1.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Premier Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Sunday, September 1st were given a dividend of $0.21 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 30th. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.14%. Premier’s dividend payout ratio is currently 131.25%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Premier

In other news, General Counsel David L. Klatsky sold 1,319 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.96, for a total transaction of $26,327.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel now directly owns 102,467 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,045,241.32. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, General Counsel David L. Klatsky sold 1,319 shares of the business’s 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 sale, the general counsel now owns 102,467 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,045,241.32. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, COO Leigh Anderson sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.63, for a total transaction of $372,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 163,928 shares in the company, valued at $3,053,978.64. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 156,312 shares of company stock valued at $3,154,400. Company insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on PINC shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Premier from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 9th. Canaccord Genuity Group reduced their target price on Premier from $21.00 to $20.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 21st. Benchmark downgraded Premier from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, August 26th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Premier from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on shares of Premier from $22.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 21st. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $21.94.

Premier 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.