Provident Financial Services’ (PFS) “Overweight” Rating Reiterated at Piper Sandler

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS)‘s stock had its “overweight” rating restated by equities researchers at Piper Sandler in a research note issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $29.00 price objective on the savings and loans company’s stock, up from their prior price objective of $26.00. Piper Sandler’s price target indicates a potential upside of 18.01% from the company’s previous close.

Several other brokerages have also recently issued reports on PFS. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on Provident Financial Services from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Raymond James Financial raised their target price on Provident Financial Services from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. Hovde Group lifted their price target on Provident Financial Services from $26.50 to $28.50 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday. Stephens initiated 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. Finally, DA Davidson restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $23.00 price objective on shares of Provident Financial Services in a research report on Friday, May 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $26.07.

Provident Financial Services Stock Performance

Shares of Provident Financial Services stock traded down $0.28 during trading on Friday, hitting $24.57. 247,996 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 983,667. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.24 and a beta of 0.78. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $23.22 and a 200-day simple moving average of $22.27. Provident Financial Services has a 52-week low of $17.61 and a 52-week high of $25.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.04.

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The savings and loans company reported $0.60 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.56 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $234.96 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $225.57 million. Provident Financial Services had a net margin of 22.15% and a return on equity of 11.09%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.55 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Provident Financial Services will post 2.36 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO George Lista sold 2,556 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.40, for a total transaction of $57,254.40. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 109,262 shares in the company, valued at $2,447,468.80. This trade represents a 2.29% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 3.02% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Provident Financial Services

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its position in Provident Financial Services by 23.9% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 44,106 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $758,000 after purchasing an additional 8,507 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its position in shares of Provident Financial Services by 4.6% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 74,926 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $1,286,000 after buying an additional 3,277 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its stake in shares of Provident Financial Services by 6.3% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 256,739 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $4,408,000 after buying an additional 15,112 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Provident Financial Services by 247.5% during the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 312,478 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $5,365,000 after buying an additional 222,549 shares during the period. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Provident Financial Services by 45.6% during the 1st quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 73,261 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $1,258,000 after buying an additional 22,961 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.97% of the company’s stock.

Provident Financial Services News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Provident Financial Services this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q2 earnings and revenue beat expectations. Provident reported $0.60 in diluted EPS, exceeding the $0.56 consensus estimate and rising from $0.55 a year earlier. Revenue reached $234.96 million versus expectations of $225.57 million. Provident Financial Services Reports Second Quarter Earnings
• Positive Sentiment: Core banking trends improved. Net interest income increased to $202.7 million from $193.7 million in the first quarter and $187.1 million a year earlier. Net interest margin expanded to 3.48% from 3.40% sequentially and 3.36% year over year. Non-interest income also increased, supported by wealth-management and insurance-agency revenue.
• Positive Sentiment: Hovde Group raised its price target. The firm lifted its target from $26.50 to $28.50 and upgraded or reaffirmed an “outperform” rating, implying approximately 14.7% upside from the cited share price. The target increase reinforces the view that PFS’s earnings and valuation remain attractive.
• Positive Sentiment: The dividend was maintained. PFS declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.24 per share, payable August 28 to shareholders of record August 14. The annualized payout is $0.96 per share, representing an approximately 3.9% yield based on the cited price. Provident Financial Services Declares Quarterly Cash Dividend
• Neutral Sentiment: Second-quarter net income was $78.1 million, or $0.60 per share, slightly below the prior quarter’s $79.4 million, but above the year-ago result. Assets and deposits continued to grow during the first half of 2026.
• Negative Sentiment: Reported insider trading data showed three sales and no purchases during the past six months. While these transactions may be routine, the absence of insider buying offers no additional bullish signal.

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.