Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) Upgraded to Hold at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research note released on Tuesday.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on Provident Financial Services from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a report on Monday, April 22nd. TheStreet lowered Provident Financial Services from a b- rating to a c+ rating in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. DA Davidson upgraded Provident Financial Services from a neutral rating to a buy rating and increased their price target for the company from $15.00 to $20.00 in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on Provident Financial Services from $20.00 to $17.00 and set a market perform rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $19.00.

Provident Financial Services Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of PFS opened at $15.09 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.43 and a beta of 1.07. Provident Financial Services has a 1 year low of $13.21 and a 1 year high of $19.62. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $14.72 and its 200-day simple moving average is $15.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 1.07.

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 19th. The savings and loans company reported $0.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.40 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $114.48 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $114.50 million. Provident Financial Services had a return on equity of 7.31% and a net margin of 16.78%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 12.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.54 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Provident Financial Services will post 1.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Provident Financial Services Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 29th will be paid a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 26th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.36%. Provident Financial Services’s payout ratio is 60.00%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Provident Financial Services news, Director Robert Mcnerney sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.86, for a total value of $89,300.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 9,475 shares in the company, valued at $169,223.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 4.29% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Provident Financial Services

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. IFP Advisors Inc purchased a new stake in Provident Financial Services in the third quarter worth $271,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Provident Financial Services by 7.3% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 889,829 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $13,605,000 after buying an additional 60,765 shares in the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. grew its position in shares of Provident Financial Services by 76.4% during the 3rd quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 109,041 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $1,667,000 after buying an additional 47,217 shares in the last quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund bought a new position in shares of Provident Financial Services during the 3rd quarter worth $681,000. Finally, Caxton Associates LP bought a new position in shares of Provident Financial Services during the 3rd quarter worth $573,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.97% of the company’s stock.

About Provident Financial Services

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.