Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) Hits New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

by · The Markets Daily

Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS – Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $21.90 and last traded at $21.90, with a volume of 6373 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $19.04.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on PFS. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded Provident Financial Services from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $20.00 to $21.00 in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Provident Financial Services from $18.00 to $21.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Provident Financial Services from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Provident Financial Services has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $20.67.

Check Out Our Latest Report on Provident Financial Services

Provident Financial Services Stock Performance

The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $18.64 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $16.78. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.83 billion, a PE ratio of 20.70 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02.

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS – Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The savings and loans company reported $0.36 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.47 by ($0.11). Provident Financial Services had a net margin of 9.55% and a return on equity of 5.21%. The business had revenue of $349.38 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $211.25 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.38 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Provident Financial Services, Inc. will post 1.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Provident Financial Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.42%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. Provident Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 92.31%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Provident Financial Services news, EVP Vito Giannola sold 5,499 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.09, for a total value of $99,476.91. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 88,656 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,603,787.04. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 4.44% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of PFS. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp increased its position in Provident Financial Services by 1.4% during the first quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp now owns 66,113 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $963,000 after buying an additional 885 shares during the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its position in Provident Financial Services by 7.4% during the first quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 14,856 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $216,000 after purchasing an additional 1,020 shares during the period. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Provident Financial Services by 43.0% during the second quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,050 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 1,218 shares during the last quarter. Aigen Investment Management LP raised its holdings in Provident Financial Services by 6.5% in the 3rd quarter. Aigen Investment Management LP now owns 20,616 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $383,000 after acquiring an additional 1,257 shares during the period. Finally, Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund lifted its position in shares of Provident Financial Services by 3.9% during the 1st quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 43,930 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $640,000 after purchasing an additional 1,637 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.97% of the company’s stock.

About Provident Financial Services

(Get Free Report)

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.

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