Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) Hits New 12-Month High After Strong Earnings

Provident Financial Services, Inc (NYSE:PFS)’s share price reached a new 52-week high on Thursday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The company traded as high as $25.26 and last traded at $25.1990, with a volume of 61356 shares. The stock had previously closed at $24.07.

The savings and loans company reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $234.96 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $225.57 million. Provident Financial Services had a return on equity of 10.98% and a net margin of 21.95%.During the same period last year, the company earned $0.55 earnings per share.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO George Lista sold 2,556 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.40, for a total transaction of $57,254.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 109,262 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,447,468.80. This represents a 2.29% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 3.02% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Provident Financial Services

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Provident Financial Services by 3.3% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 8,070,734 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $170,775,000 after purchasing an additional 256,540 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted 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 buying an additional 41,961 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in 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 grew its holdings in 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. lifted its holdings in 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 during the period. 71.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Provident Financial Services Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 1.04. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $23.17 and a 200-day simple moving average of $22.23. The company has a market capitalization of $3.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.74 and a beta of 0.78.

About Provident Financial Services

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.