Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Buy” from the three research firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $23.00.

Several research firms have recently issued reports on PFS. Hovde Group initiated coverage on Provident Financial Services in a research note on Friday. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $25.00 price objective for the company. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Provident Financial Services from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 28th. DA Davidson upped their price target on shares of Provident Financial Services from $24.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised Provident Financial Services from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $20.00 to $21.00 in a research report on Thursday, August 15th.

Provident Financial Services Price Performance

Provident Financial Services stock opened at $20.31 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $20.05 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $17.81. The firm has a market cap of $2.65 billion, a PE ratio of 19.53 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03. Provident Financial Services has a one year low of $13.07 and a one year high of $22.24.

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The savings and loans company reported $0.36 EPS 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 firm had revenue of $349.38 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $211.25 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.38 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Provident Financial Services will post 1.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Provident Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 29th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th were given a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 15th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.73%. Provident Financial Services’s payout ratio is presently 92.31%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP James A. Christy sold 3,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.88, for a total value of $73,080.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 34,254 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $715,223.52. The trade was a 9.27 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 4.29% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Provident Financial Services

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of PFS. Glenmede Trust Co. NA increased its position in shares of Provident Financial Services by 5.1% during the third quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 16,672 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $309,000 after acquiring an additional 802 shares in the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in Provident Financial Services by 120.6% during the 3rd quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,500 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 820 shares during the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. increased its holdings in Provident Financial Services by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 29,402 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $546,000 after purchasing an additional 944 shares in the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Provident Financial Services by 43.0% in the second quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,050 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $58,000 after purchasing an additional 1,218 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Aigen Investment Management LP lifted its holdings in shares of Provident Financial Services by 6.5% in the third quarter. Aigen Investment Management LP now owns 20,616 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $383,000 after purchasing an additional 1,257 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.97% of the company’s stock.

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.