Premier Financial (NASDAQ:PFC) Hits New 12-Month High – Should You Buy?

Premier Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:PFC) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $29.64 and last traded at $29.25, with a volume of 10321 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $29.18.

Premier Financial Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $1.04 billion, a PE ratio of 14.62 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.95 and a quick ratio of 0.93. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $26.65 and a 200-day moving average price of $25.57.

Premier Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 7th. Investors of record on Friday, January 31st were issued a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.26%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 31st. Premier Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 62.31%.

Insider Activity at Premier Financial

In related news, EVP Dennis E. Rose, Jr. sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.98, for a total value of $55,960.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 36,144 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,011,309.12. The trade was a 5.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 2.22% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Premier Financial

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in PFC. Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Premier Financial during the second quarter valued at approximately $315,000. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of Premier Financial during the third quarter valued at approximately $200,000. CWM LLC grew its holdings in shares of Premier Financial by 42.1% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 9,211 shares of the company’s stock valued at $216,000 after purchasing an additional 2,731 shares during the last quarter. Creative Planning grew its holdings in shares of Premier Financial by 5.7% during the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 46,421 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,090,000 after purchasing an additional 2,500 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its holdings in shares of Premier Financial by 37.0% during the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 289,616 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,800,000 after purchasing an additional 78,160 shares during the last quarter. 66.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.