Premier (NASDAQ:PINC) Hits New 52-Week High – Still a Buy?

Premier, Inc. (NASDAQ:PINC) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $28.29 and last traded at $28.23, with a volume of 126916 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $25.85.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on PINC shares. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on Premier from $24.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, August 25th. Leerink Partners lifted their price target on shares of Premier from $24.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 19th. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their price target on shares of Premier from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on shares of Premier from $22.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Premier from $23.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 20th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $25.29.

Premier Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $2.24 billion, a PE ratio of 123.19 and a beta of 0.61. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $23.30 and its 200-day simple moving average is $21.56.

Premier Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 1st will be issued a $0.21 dividend. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 29th. Premier’s payout ratio is currently 381.82%.

Insider Activity

In other Premier news, General Counsel David L. Klatsky sold 3,349 shares of Premier stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.57, for a total value of $85,633.93. Following the sale, the general counsel owned 97,257 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,486,861.49. The trade was a 3.33% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director John T. Bigalke sold 1,137 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.79, for a total transaction of $29,323.23. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 27,536 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $710,153.44. This trade represents a 3.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 12,326 shares of company stock worth $317,230 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.96% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Premier

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of PINC. First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Premier by 198.2% in the 2nd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 1,130 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 751 shares in the last quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. purchased a new stake in shares of Premier during the 2nd quarter valued at about $32,000. Signaturefd LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Premier by 72.2% in the 2nd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 2,197 shares of the company’s stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 921 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in Premier by 112.1% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,522 shares of the company’s stock worth $55,000 after acquiring an additional 1,333 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Premier by 155.1% during the second quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,541 shares of the company’s stock worth $55,000 after acquiring an additional 1,545 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 74.41% of the company’s stock.

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.