Premier, Inc. (NASDAQ:PINC) Shares Sold by GSA Capital Partners LLP

GSA Capital Partners LLP decreased its holdings in Premier, Inc. (NASDAQ:PINC) by 42.4% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 20,060 shares of the company’s stock after selling 14,796 shares during the quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP’s holdings in Premier were worth $401,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds 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 first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd purchased a new position in Premier in the first quarter worth approximately $670,000. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co grew its position in Premier by 4.0% in the first quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 131,037 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,896,000 after acquiring an additional 5,062 shares during the period. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. grew its position in Premier by 6.4% in the first quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 339,808 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,510,000 after acquiring an additional 20,416 shares during the period. Finally, Quadrature Capital Ltd purchased a new position in Premier in the first quarter worth approximately $210,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.41% of the company’s stock.

Premier Trading Up 0.9 %

NASDAQ:PINC opened at $22.42 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $2.15 billion, a PE ratio of 16.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 10.03 and a beta of 0.40. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $20.57 and a 200 day moving average price of $19.84. Premier, Inc. has a 12-month low of $17.95 and a 12-month high of $23.43.

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

Premier Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced 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 3.75%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. Premier’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 61.76%.

Insider Transactions at Premier

In other Premier news, COO Leigh Anderson sold 20,000 shares of Premier stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.62, for a total value of $392,400.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 131,707 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,584,091.34. The trade was a 13.18 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Michael J. Alkire sold 17,415 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.16, for a total value of $403,331.40. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 520,728 shares in the company, valued at $12,060,060.48. This trade represents a 3.24 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 142,856 shares of company stock worth $2,941,879. Corporate insiders own 0.96% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on PINC shares. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their price objective on Premier from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Barclays raised their price target on Premier from $20.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Benchmark lowered Premier from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Premier from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Premier from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, September 9th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat, Premier currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $21.36.

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.