Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC Buys 1,929 Shares of Premier Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:PFC)

Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Premier Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:PFC) by 2.8% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 70,842 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,929 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC owned 0.20% of Premier Financial worth $1,449,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Premier Financial by 4.7% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,065,098 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,669,000 after purchasing an additional 48,257 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its holdings in Premier Financial by 252.4% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 53,731 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,091,000 after buying an additional 38,486 shares during the period. Boston Partners lifted its holdings in shares of Premier Financial by 12.6% during the first quarter. Boston Partners now owns 22,770 shares of the company’s stock valued at $462,000 after purchasing an additional 2,547 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Premier Financial by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,983,708 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,269,000 after purchasing an additional 10,557 shares during the period. Finally, New York State Common Retirement Fund lifted its stake in shares of Premier Financial by 26.7% during the 4th quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 79,819 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,924,000 after buying an additional 16,819 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 66.14% of the company’s stock.

Premier Financial Price Performance

Shares of Premier Financial stock traded up $0.07 on Tuesday, reaching $22.79. The stock had a trading volume of 25,441 shares, compared to its average volume of 151,294. The company has a market cap of $816.18 million, a P/E ratio of 7.33 and a beta of 1.28. Premier Financial Corp. has a 1 year low of $15.79 and a 1 year high of $26.40. The business’s 50 day moving average is $21.67 and its two-hundred day moving average is $20.65. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

Premier Financial (NASDAQ:PFC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The company reported $0.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by ($0.06). The firm had revenue of $110.55 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $63.20 million. Premier Financial had a net margin of 18.07% and a return on equity of 8.23%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.68 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Premier Financial Corp. will post 2.03 EPS for the current year.

Premier Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 9th will be paid a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.44%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 9th. Premier Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 40.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on PFC shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $23.00 price target (down previously from $25.00) on shares of Premier Financial in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Janney Montgomery Scott reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Premier Financial in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their price target on shares of Premier Financial from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $22.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Donald P. Hileman sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.19, for a total value of $31,785.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 29,811 shares in the company, valued at approximately $631,695.09. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 2.22% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Premier Financial

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.