Premier, Inc. $PINC Stock Position Decreased by US Bancorp DE

US Bancorp DE cut its stake in shares of Premier, Inc. (NASDAQ:PINC) by 61.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,460 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,370 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE’s holdings in Premier were worth $28,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its stake in Premier by 40.4% in the 4th quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 4,371 shares of the company’s stock worth $93,000 after purchasing an additional 1,257 shares in the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Premier by 44.5% during the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 5,737 shares of the company’s stock valued at $122,000 after buying an additional 1,767 shares in the last quarter. Vestcor Inc acquired a new position in shares of Premier in the first quarter worth about $125,000. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its position in shares of Premier by 97.6% in the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 7,719 shares of the company’s stock worth $149,000 after acquiring an additional 3,813 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Occudo Quantitative Strategies LP purchased a new position in shares of Premier in the fourth quarter worth approximately $229,000. 74.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on PINC shares. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Premier from $23.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Bank of America increased their target price on Premier from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Tuesday. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their target price on Premier from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on Premier from $22.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Leerink Partners increased their price objective on Premier from $24.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $24.00.

Premier Stock Down 2.5%

Premier stock opened at $25.55 on Thursday. Premier, Inc. has a 12 month low of $17.23 and a 12 month high of $27.26. The stock has a market cap of $2.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 116.14 and a beta of 0.56. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $22.18 and its 200-day simple moving average is $20.84.

Premier Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 1st will be given a $0.21 dividend. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 29th. Premier’s dividend payout ratio is presently 147.37%.

Insider Transactions at Premier

In related news, Director Helen M. Boudreau sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.88, for a total value of $45,760.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 18,668 shares in the company, valued at approximately $427,123.84. This represents a 9.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director John T. Bigalke sold 1,137 shares of Premier stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.03, for a total transaction of $26,185.11. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 28,673 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $660,339.19. This trade represents a 3.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.96% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.