State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D Sells 11,091 Shares of Premier Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:PFC)

State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D reduced its position in Premier Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:PFC) by 11.3% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 86,651 shares of the company’s stock after selling 11,091 shares during the period. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D owned approximately 0.24% of Premier Financial worth $2,035,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in Premier Financial in the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Premier Financial in the second quarter worth about $36,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC purchased a new position in shares of Premier Financial during the 2nd quarter valued at about $84,000. CWM LLC grew its stake in shares of Premier Financial by 296.8% during the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 6,480 shares of the company’s stock valued at $133,000 after acquiring an additional 4,847 shares during the period. Finally, EMC Capital Management increased its holdings in Premier Financial by 56.9% in the 1st quarter. EMC Capital Management now owns 8,392 shares of the company’s stock worth $170,000 after acquiring an additional 3,043 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 66.14% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Premier Financial

In other news, EVP Dennis E. Rose, Jr. sold 2,000 shares of Premier Financial stock in a transaction on Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.01, for a total transaction of $50,020.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 38,114 shares in the company, valued at approximately $953,231.14. This trade represents a 4.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 2.22% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Janney Montgomery Scott reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Premier Financial in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $22.50.

Premier Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:PFC opened at $27.99 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $24.61 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $22.87. Premier Financial Corp. has a 52 week low of $18.63 and a 52 week high of $29.15. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.21 and a beta of 1.25.

Premier Financial (NASDAQ:PFC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The company reported $0.46 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.50 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $112.74 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $64.55 million. Premier Financial had a return on equity of 7.43% and a net margin of 16.06%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.69 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Premier Financial Corp. will post 2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Premier Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th were given a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.43%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. Premier Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 62.94%.

Premier Financial Profile

Premier Financial Corp., through its subsidiaries, provides various banking services. It offers demand, checking, money market, and savings accounts, as well as certificates of deposits and certificates of deposit account registry service; and investment products. The company also provides residential and commercial real estate, commercial, construction, home improvement and home equity, installment, and consumer loans.