Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS) have earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the four brokerages that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $17.75.

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on Provident Financial Services from $20.00 to $17.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. DA Davidson cut their target price on Provident Financial Services from $17.00 to $15.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on Provident Financial Services from $21.00 to $19.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Finally, TheStreet cut Provident Financial Services from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 13th.

Insider Activity at Provident Financial Services

In related news, Director Robert Mcnerney sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.86, for a total value of $89,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 9,475 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $169,223.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 4.29% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Provident Financial Services

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Federated Hermes Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Provident Financial Services by 132.8% in the 3rd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 1,867 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 1,065 shares during the last quarter. TFO Wealth Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Provident Financial Services by 17,508.3% in the 4th quarter. TFO Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,113 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 2,101 shares during the last quarter. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Provident Financial Services by 35.7% in the 1st quarter. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. now owns 1,785 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 470 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Middle East FZE purchased a new position in shares of Provident Financial Services in the 4th quarter worth about $43,000. Finally, Point72 Europe London LLP bought a new stake in Provident Financial Services in the 4th quarter valued at about $43,000. 71.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Provident Financial Services Stock Performance

PFS stock traded up $0.26 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $14.64. 342,383 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 629,551. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 1.07. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $15.60 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $15.81. Provident Financial Services has a one year low of $13.43 and a one year high of $19.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.54 and a beta of 1.07.

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 26th. The savings and loans company reported $0.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $114.76 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $114.30 million. Provident Financial Services had a return on equity of 7.88% and a net margin of 18.46%. Provident Financial Services’s quarterly revenue was down 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.66 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Provident Financial Services will post 1.68 EPS for the current year.

Provident Financial Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, February 9th were given a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 8th. Provident Financial Services’s payout ratio is currently 56.14%.

Provident Financial Services Company Profile

Provident Financial Services, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Provident Bank that provides various banking products and services to individuals, families, and businesses in the United States. Its deposit products include savings, checking, interest-bearing checking, money market deposit, and certificate of deposit accounts, as well as IRA products.