Provident Financial Services, Inc $PFS Shares Acquired by Hsbc Holdings PLC

Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its stake in shares of Provident Financial Services, Inc (NYSE:PFS) by 104.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 281,106 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock after buying an additional 143,638 shares during the quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC owned 0.22% of Provident Financial Services worth $5,951,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in PFS. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in Provident Financial Services by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 7,814,194 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $154,331,000 after buying an additional 125,104 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of Provident Financial Services by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,046,392 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $139,166,000 after acquiring an additional 41,961 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in shares of Provident Financial Services by 5.5% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 6,710,987 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $132,542,000 after acquiring an additional 351,889 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in shares of Provident Financial Services by 15.9% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,578,302 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $31,171,000 after acquiring an additional 216,567 shares during the period. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Provident Financial Services by 38.1% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,239,628 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $24,483,000 after acquiring an additional 342,301 shares in the last quarter. 71.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO George Lista sold 2,556 shares of Provident Financial Services stock in a transaction on Friday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.40, for a total value of $57,254.40. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 109,262 shares in the company, valued at $2,447,468.80. This trade represents a 2.29% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 3.02% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Provident Financial Services Stock Performance

Shares of PFS stock opened at $23.76 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $22.99 and its 200 day moving average price is $22.13. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.10 billion, a PE ratio of 10.11 and a beta of 0.78. Provident Financial Services, Inc has a 52-week low of $17.61 and a 52-week high of $24.56.

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The savings and loans company reported $0.61 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.55 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $225.20 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $225.62 million. Provident Financial Services had a return on equity of 10.98% and a net margin of 21.95%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.49 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Provident Financial Services, Inc will post 2.36 EPS for the current year.

Provident Financial Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Investors of record on Friday, May 15th were issued a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 15th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.0%. Provident Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 40.85%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on PFS shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on Provident Financial Services from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Weiss Ratings raised Provident Financial Services from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $23.00 price target on shares of Provident Financial Services in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Stephens began coverage on Provident Financial Services in a research note on Monday, June 8th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $24.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Raymond James Financial boosted their price objective on Provident Financial Services from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Provident Financial Services has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $24.79.

Provident Financial Services Company Profile

Provident Financial Services, Inc is the bank holding company for Provident Bank, a regional commercial bank headquartered in Jersey City, New Jersey. The company operates a network of full-service branches across New Jersey, the New York metropolitan area and eastern Pennsylvania, offering a range of personal and business banking solutions.

Its core products and services include checking and savings accounts, consumer and residential mortgage loans, commercial real estate financing and small-business lending.