Premier, Inc. (NASDAQ:PINC) Receives $25.29 Consensus Target Price from Brokerages

Key Points

• Premier, Inc. has received an average rating of "Reduce" from seven analysts, with one sell recommendation and six hold recommendations, indicating a cautious outlook on the stock.
• The company's share price target has seen recent increases, with Robert W. Baird setting a new target of $27.00, reflecting a potential upside from current levels.
• Payout for the recently declared quarterly dividend of $0.21 per share results in an annualized yield of 3.1%, though the dividend payout ratio stands at a high 381.82%.

Shares of Premier, Inc. (NASDAQ:PINC - Get Free Report) have received an average recommendation of "Reduce" from the seven ratings firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and six have assigned a hold rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $25.2857.

A number of brokerages have recently commented on PINC. Leerink Partners raised their target price on shares of Premier from $24.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 19th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Premier from $23.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Premier from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 19th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of Premier from $22.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 20th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their price objective on shares of Premier from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 20th.

Premier Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ PINC traded down $0.06 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $26.54. 158,915 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,616,254. The company's 50-day moving average is $23.58 and its two-hundred day moving average is $21.76. The company has a market capitalization of $2.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 120.61 and a beta of 0.61. Premier has a 1 year low of $17.23 and a 1 year high of $28.79.

Premier Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.21 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 29th. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.2%. Premier's payout ratio is 381.82%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Andy Brailo sold 6,521 shares of the business'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 $168,176.59. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 99,447 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,564,738.13. The trade was a 6.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director John T. Bigalke sold 1,137 shares of the business'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 sale, the director directly owned 27,536 shares in the company, valued at $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 have sold 12,326 shares of company stock valued at $317,230 over the last ninety days. 0.96% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Osaic Holdings Inc. lifted its position in Premier by 131.9% during the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 4,214 shares of the company's stock valued at $92,000 after purchasing an additional 2,397 shares during the period. Neuberger Berman Group LLC raised its position in shares of Premier by 16.8% in the second quarter. Neuberger Berman Group LLC now owns 13,059 shares of the company's stock worth $286,000 after acquiring an additional 1,876 shares during the period. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its position in shares of Premier by 1,069.9% in the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 7,862 shares of the company's stock worth $172,000 after acquiring an additional 7,190 shares during the period. Corient Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Premier in the second quarter worth about $206,000. Finally, Vident Advisory LLC acquired a new position in shares of Premier in the second quarter worth about $204,000. 74.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.