nVerses Capital LLC Boosts Stake in Premier, Inc. (NASDAQ:PINC)

nVerses Capital LLC raised its position in Premier, Inc. (NASDAQ:PINC) by 196.7% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 8,900 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,900 shares during the quarter. nVerses Capital LLC’s holdings in Premier were worth $178,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in Premier by 8.5% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 220,810 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,937,000 after buying an additional 17,212 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Premier by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,213,088 shares of the company’s stock valued at $317,805,000 after purchasing an additional 199,702 shares during the period. Range Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Premier by 41.1% during the first quarter. Range Financial Group LLC now owns 52,787 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,167,000 after purchasing an additional 15,374 shares in the last quarter. Thompson Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Premier by 14.3% in the first quarter. Thompson Investment Management Inc. now owns 24,030 shares of the company’s stock valued at $531,000 after buying an additional 3,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Janiczek Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Premier by 105.3% during the 1st quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,201 shares of the company’s stock worth $115,000 after acquiring an additional 2,668 shares in the last quarter. 74.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Premier

In related news, insider Andy Brailo sold 4,390 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.51, for a total transaction of $90,038.90. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 104,410 shares in the company, valued at $2,141,449.10. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, insider Andy Brailo sold 4,390 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.51, for a total transaction of $90,038.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 104,410 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,141,449.10. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO Leigh Anderson sold 20,000 shares of Premier stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.62, for a total value of $392,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 131,707 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,584,091.34. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 171,587 shares of company stock valued at $3,484,750. Company insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on PINC shares. Canaccord Genuity Group reduced their target price on shares of Premier from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Robert W. Baird lowered 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. Benchmark lowered Premier from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, August 26th. StockNews.com downgraded Premier from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, September 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Premier from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, September 9th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to MarketBeat.com, Premier presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $21.81.

Premier Trading Up 1.4 %

NASDAQ PINC opened at $20.26 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $19.89 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $19.75. The stock has a market cap of $2.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 9.13 and a beta of 0.41. Premier, Inc. has a 52 week low of $17.95 and a 52 week high of $23.01.

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

Premier Dividend Announcement

The business 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 was Friday, August 30th. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.15%. Premier’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 81.55%.

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.