Provident Financial (NASDAQ:PROV) Stock Rating Raised to Strong-Buy at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of Provident Financial (NASDAQ:PROV) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a report issued on Tuesday morning,Zacks reports.

A number of other brokerages have also weighed in on PROV. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Provident Financial to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, October 3rd. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Provident Financial from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a report on Friday, October 16th. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their price objective on shares of Provident Financial from $17.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $18.00.

Provident Financial Trading Up 0.1%

NASDAQ PROV opened at $18.20 on Tuesday. Provident Financial has a one year low of $14.95 and a one year high of $18.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 1.17. The firm has a market cap of $112.84 million, a P/E ratio of 17.67 and a beta of 0.33. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $18.34 and its 200-day moving average is $17.23.

Provident Financial (NASDAQ:PROV) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.32 by ($0.07). Provident Financial had a net margin of 10.88% and a return on equity of 5.16%. The business had revenue of $10.57 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.30 million. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Provident Financial will post 1.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Provident Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.14 per share. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 12th. Provident Financial’s payout ratio is 54.37%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in Provident Financial during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $4,844,000. Empowered Funds LLC bought a new stake in Provident Financial during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $595,000. Raffles Associates LP acquired a new position in Provident Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $6,727,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new position in Provident Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $5,224,000. Finally, Susquehanna International Group LLP increased its position in Provident Financial by 73.9% in the 2nd quarter. Susquehanna International Group LLP now owns 32,363 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $557,000 after acquiring an additional 13,756 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 71.34% of the company’s stock.

About Provident Financial

Provident Financial Holdings, Inc is the holding company for Provident Savings Bank, a federally chartered community bank headquartered in Riverside, California. The bank serves individuals, families and businesses primarily in Southern California, with a focus on the Inland Empire and surrounding communities.

Provident Savings Bank offers a range of traditional banking products and services, including deposit accounts, residential mortgage loans, home equity financing, consumer loans and commercial real estate lending.