AQR Capital Management LLC Sells 61,104 Shares of Premier, Inc. $PINC

Key Points

• AQR Capital Management LLC reduced its stake in Premier, Inc. by 6.1%, bringing its total ownership to approximately 934,802 shares valued at $17.97 million.
• Several hedge funds have increased their positions in Premier, with notable increases including Advisors Asset Management's 126.7% and Royal Bank of Canada's 2,482.1% in the 1st quarter.
• Premier has announced a quarterly dividend of $0.21 per share, providing an annualized yield of 3.1%, following the company's recent performance and analyst reports.

AQR Capital Management LLC lessened its stake in shares of Premier, Inc. (NASDAQ:PINC - Free Report) by 6.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 934,802 shares of the company's stock after selling 61,104 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC owned about 1.02% of Premier worth $17,967,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Advisors Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Premier by 126.7% during the 1st quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 224,310 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,325,000 after acquiring an additional 125,365 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its position in shares of Premier by 2,482.1% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 461,445 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,896,000 after acquiring an additional 443,574 shares during the last quarter. Graham Capital Management L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of Premier during the 1st quarter valued at $1,363,000. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of Premier during the 1st quarter valued at $234,000. Finally, Baird Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Premier by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 56,826 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,096,000 after acquiring an additional 972 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.41% of the company's stock.

Premier Trading Down 0.5%

Premier stock traded down $0.13 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $26.47. 105,851 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,615,682. The stock has a market cap of $2.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 120.23 and a beta of 0.61. Premier, Inc. has a 1-year low of $17.23 and a 1-year high of $28.79. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $23.58 and a two-hundred day moving average of $21.76.

Premier Dividend Announcement

The firm 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 dividend of $0.21 per share. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 29th. Premier's dividend payout ratio is presently 381.82%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PINC has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Leerink Partners increased their price objective on Premier from $24.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 19th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on Premier from $22.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 20th. 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, August 19th. UBS Group increased their target price on Premier from $23.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 20th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group increased their target price on Premier from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 20th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $25.29.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Andy Brailo sold 6,521 shares of Premier stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.79, for a total value of $168,176.59. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 99,447 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,564,738.13. The trade was a 6.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, General Counsel David L. Klatsky sold 3,349 shares of Premier stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.57, for a total value of $85,633.93. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel owned 97,257 shares in the company, valued at $2,486,861.49. The trade was a 3.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 12,326 shares of company stock valued at $317,230 over the last three months. 0.96% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.