Premier (NASDAQ:PINC) Reaches New 52-Week High - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• Premier, Inc. (NASDAQ:PINC) has hit a new 52-week high, trading at $28.29 during mid-day trading on Monday, significantly up from a previous close of $25.85.
• Multiple analysts have upgraded their price targets for Premier, with Piper Sandler raising theirs to $28.00, but the average rating remains a "Reduce" with an average price target of $24.50.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.21 per share, with a notable dividend yield of 3.0%.

Premier, Inc. (NASDAQ:PINC - Get Free Report)'s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $28.29 and last traded at $28.23, with a volume of 126916 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $25.85.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PINC has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Premier from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 19th. Leerink Partners raised their target price on shares of Premier from $24.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 19th. Piper Sandler raised their target price on shares of Premier from $24.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, August 25th. 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 report on Wednesday, August 20th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group increased 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. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Premier has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $25.29.

Premier Trading Down 0.8%

The firm has a market cap of $2.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 120.91 and a beta of 0.61. The company's 50-day moving average is $23.58 and its 200-day moving average is $21.71.

Premier Announces Dividend

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

Insider Activity at Premier

In related news, General Counsel David L. Klatsky sold 3,349 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.57, for a total value of $85,633.93. Following 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, 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 completion of the transaction, the insider owned 99,447 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,564,738.13. The trade was a 6.15% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 12,326 shares of company stock worth $317,230 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.96% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Premier

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of PINC. 8 Knots Management LLC acquired a new position in Premier in the second quarter valued at $37,151,000. State Street Corp increased its stake in Premier by 17.6% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,259,088 shares of the company's stock valued at $93,402,000 after purchasing an additional 638,498 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Premier by 33.3% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,247,171 shares of the company's stock valued at $49,285,000 after purchasing an additional 561,262 shares in the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada increased its stake in Premier by 2,482.1% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 461,445 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,896,000 after purchasing an additional 443,574 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC increased its stake in Premier by 101.2% in the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 809,939 shares of the company's stock valued at $15,616,000 after purchasing an additional 407,373 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.41% of the company's stock.

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.