Premier Financial (NASDAQ:PFC) PT Raised to $22.00 at Piper Sandler

Premier Financial (NASDAQ:PFC) had its price objective upped by Piper Sandler from $21.00 to $22.00 in a research report sent to investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a neutral rating on the stock.

A number of other equities analysts also recently weighed in on PFC. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on Premier Financial from $26.00 to $25.00 and set a market perform rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. Hovde Group raised Premier Financial from a market perform rating to an outperform rating and set a $22.50 price target for the company in a research report on Monday, April 1st.

Premier Financial Stock Down 0.5 %

NASDAQ PFC traded down $0.10 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $19.98. 27,712 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 136,341. The company’s 50-day moving average is $19.73 and its two-hundred day moving average is $20.40. Premier Financial has a one year low of $13.60 and a one year high of $24.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 0.97. The company has a market capitalization of $715.28 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.48 and a beta of 1.27.

Premier Financial (NASDAQ:PFC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The company reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.02. Premier Financial had a return on equity of 9.19% and a net margin of 23.67%. The firm had revenue of $108.84 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $63.93 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.63 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Premier Financial will post 2.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Premier Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 3rd will be issued a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 2nd. Premier Financial’s payout ratio is presently 40.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Premier Financial

In other Premier Financial news, Director Donald P. Hileman sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.07, for a total transaction of $30,105.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 31,311 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $628,411.77. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 2.22% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PFC. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in Premier Financial by 333.1% during the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 268,188 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,575,000 after buying an additional 206,258 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Premier Financial by 13.9% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,016,841 shares of the company’s stock valued at $17,347,000 after purchasing an additional 124,126 shares in the last quarter. Elizabeth Park Capital Advisors Ltd. raised its stake in Premier Financial by 153.4% in the fourth quarter. Elizabeth Park Capital Advisors Ltd. now owns 198,733 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,789,000 after purchasing an additional 120,299 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its stake in Premier Financial by 251.0% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 113,906 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,943,000 after purchasing an additional 81,457 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund acquired a new position in Premier Financial in the third quarter valued at about $1,201,000. Institutional investors own 66.14% of the company’s stock.

Premier Financial Company Profile

Premier Financial Corp., through its subsidiaries, provides various banking services. It offers demand, checking, money market, and savings accounts, as well as certificates of deposits and certificates of deposit account registry service; and investment products. The company also provides residential and commercial real estate, commercial, construction, home improvement and home equity, installment, and consumer loans.