Principal Financial Group Inc. Lowers Position in Premier, Inc. (NASDAQ:PINC)

Principal Financial Group Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Premier, Inc. (NASDAQ:PINC - Free Report) by 16.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 515,763 shares of the company's stock after selling 102,509 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 0.49% of Premier worth $9,629,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of PINC. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Premier in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $51,271,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Premier by 139.3% in the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,121,702 shares of the company's stock worth $47,441,000 after acquiring an additional 1,235,017 shares during the last quarter. US Bancorp DE lifted its holdings in shares of Premier by 8,726.8% in the 1st quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 374,434 shares of the company's stock worth $8,275,000 after acquiring an additional 370,192 shares during the last quarter. Invenomic Capital Management LP lifted its holdings in shares of Premier by 37.7% in the 1st quarter. Invenomic Capital Management LP now owns 1,027,437 shares of the company's stock worth $22,706,000 after acquiring an additional 281,131 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Natixis lifted its holdings in shares of Premier by 162.3% in the 1st quarter. Natixis now owns 452,000 shares of the company's stock worth $9,989,000 after acquiring an additional 279,700 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.41% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Premier

In related news, CEO Michael J. Alkire sold 18,771 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.12, for a total value of $396,443.52. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 543,927 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,487,738.24. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other Premier news, CEO Michael J. Alkire sold 19,362 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.83, for a total transaction of $403,310.46. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 578,143 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,042,718.69. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Michael J. Alkire sold 18,771 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.12, for a total transaction of $396,443.52. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 543,927 shares in the company, valued at $11,487,738.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 148,261 shares of company stock valued at $2,964,830 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.85% of the company's stock.

Premier Stock Down 0.1 %

Premier stock traded down $0.02 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $20.44. 1,125,077 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,471,529. Premier, Inc. has a twelve month low of $17.95 and a twelve month high of $23.56. The company has a fifty day moving average of $19.79 and a 200-day moving average of $20.09. The company has a market cap of $2.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.94, a P/E/G ratio of 9.79 and a beta of 0.40.

Premier (NASDAQ:PINC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 20th. The company reported $0.69 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.44 by $0.25. Premier had a net margin of 8.88% and a return on equity of 11.69%. The business had revenue of $350.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $308.88 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.70 EPS. The company's revenue was up 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Premier, Inc. will post 1.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Premier Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, September 15th. Investors of record on Sunday, September 1st will be given a $0.21 dividend. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.11%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 30th. Premier's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 131.25%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently commented on PINC shares. Benchmark lowered shares of Premier from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, August 26th. Canaccord Genuity Group decreased their price objective on shares of Premier from $21.00 to $20.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. StockNews.com lowered shares of Premier from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, September 2nd. Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on shares of Premier from $22.00 to $19.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Premier from $23.00 to $21.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 28th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat, Premier has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $22.19.

Premier 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.