Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) Reaches New 1-Year High – Should You Buy?

by · The Markets Daily

Provident Financial Services, Inc (NYSE:PFS – Get Free Report)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $21.00 and last traded at $20.6320, with a volume of 757362 shares. The stock had previously closed at $20.21.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Zacks Research lowered shares of Provident Financial Services from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, September 29th. DA Davidson lowered shares of Provident Financial Services from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 20th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Provident Financial Services in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Provident Financial Services currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $22.70.

Check Out Our Latest Research Report on PFS

Provident Financial Services Stock Up 2.1%

The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The company has a market capitalization of $2.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.53 and a beta of 0.88. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $18.95 and its 200 day moving average price is $18.61.

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 17th. The savings and loans company reported $0.68 earnings per share for the quarter. Provident Financial Services had a return on equity of 9.62% and a net margin of 18.76%.The firm had revenue of $114.54 million for the quarter. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Provident Financial Services, Inc will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Provident Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 14th were paid a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 14th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.7%. Provident Financial Services’s payout ratio is 48.98%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO George Lista sold 8,262 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.35, for a total transaction of $151,607.70. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 108,656 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,993,837.60. This trade represents a 7.07% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director John Pugliese sold 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.91, for a total value of $497,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 87,907 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,750,228.37. This represents a 22.14% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 36,262 shares of company stock worth $709,058 in the last three months. Insiders own 3.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in Provident Financial Services by 10.0% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 6,359,098 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $122,603,000 after acquiring an additional 576,673 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Provident Financial Services by 1.4% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,069,463 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $53,815,000 after purchasing an additional 41,758 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Provident Financial Services by 5.2% in the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,584,298 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $44,372,000 after purchasing an additional 127,897 shares in the last quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP raised its position in Provident Financial Services by 0.6% in the 2nd quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP now owns 1,978,498 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $34,683,000 after purchasing an additional 11,647 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in Provident Financial Services by 1.7% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,402,478 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $24,585,000 after buying an additional 22,986 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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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