Premier, Inc. (NASDAQ:PINC) Shares Bought by Bailard Inc.

Bailard Inc. raised its position in shares of Premier, Inc. (NASDAQ:PINC) by 48.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 18,300 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,000 shares during the quarter. Bailard Inc.’s holdings in Premier were worth $409,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in PINC. Global Retirement Partners LLC raised its stake in Premier by 153.3% in the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 1,583 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 958 shares during the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp raised its position in shares of Premier by 53.0% in the third quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 2,138 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 741 shares during the last quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Premier by 246.5% in the fourth quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,533 shares of the company’s stock worth $57,000 after buying an additional 1,802 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC boosted its position in Premier by 29.5% during the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 5,106 shares of the company’s stock worth $110,000 after acquiring an additional 1,162 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in Premier during the 4th quarter valued at about $133,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.41% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on PINC shares. SVB Leerink initiated coverage on shares of Premier in a research note on Monday, February 26th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $22.50 target price on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded Premier from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 7th. Leerink Partnrs restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Premier in a report on Monday, February 26th. Finally, Barclays began coverage on Premier in a report on Wednesday, January 3rd. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $22.00 price target on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $25.15.

Premier Trading Up 0.7 %

NASDAQ PINC opened at $20.96 on Friday. Premier, Inc. has a 12 month low of $18.89 and a 12 month high of $33.58. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.08, a PEG ratio of 5.33 and a beta of 0.38. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $21.25 and its two-hundred day moving average is $21.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a current ratio of 1.43 and a quick ratio of 1.32.

Premier (NASDAQ:PINC) last posted its earnings results on Monday, February 5th. The company reported $0.54 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.52 by $0.02. Premier had a net margin of 12.71% and a return on equity of 11.60%. The firm had revenue of $334.75 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $338.55 million. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Premier, Inc. will post 1.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Premier Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Saturday, June 1st will be given a $0.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 31st. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.01%. Premier’s dividend payout ratio is presently 60.43%.

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.