Public Sector Pension Investment Board Acquires 118,146 Shares of Premier, Inc. $PINC

Key Points

• The Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its holdings in Premier, Inc. by 49.3%, owning a total of 357,644 shares worth approximately $6.9 million after acquiring 118,146 additional shares.
• A significant majority, 74.41%, of Premier's stock is currently owned by institutional investors, indicating strong institutional interest in the company.
• Brokerages have upgraded Premier's price targets, with several institutions setting the target price between $22.00 and $24.00 while maintaining a generally "hold" rating for the stock.

Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its stake in shares of Premier, Inc. (NASDAQ:PINC - Free Report) by 49.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 357,644 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 118,146 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board owned about 0.39% of Premier worth $6,895,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PINC. Alliancebernstein L.P. lifted its position in Premier by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 61,575 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,305,000 after purchasing an additional 1,781 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its position in shares of Premier by 40.4% during the 4th quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 4,371 shares of the company's stock valued at $93,000 after acquiring an additional 1,257 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in shares of Premier by 23.6% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 719,597 shares of the company's stock valued at $15,255,000 after acquiring an additional 137,306 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Premier in the 4th quarter worth $286,000. Finally, Sterling Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Premier by 44.5% in the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 5,737 shares of the company's stock worth $122,000 after purchasing an additional 1,767 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 74.41% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PINC has been the subject of several recent research reports. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on Premier from $19.00 to $24.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Leerink Partners lifted 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. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their target price on shares of Premier from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Premier from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Premier from $22.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Premier presently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $24.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Premier

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

Premier Stock Performance

Shares of Premier stock traded up $0.03 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $25.58. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,594,887 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,875,774. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $22.24 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $20.86. Premier, Inc. has a 12-month low of $17.23 and a 12-month high of $27.26. The company has a market cap of $2.11 billion, a PE ratio of 116.28 and a beta of 0.56.

Premier Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Investors of record on Monday, September 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.21 per share. 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 (DPR) is presently 381.82%.

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.