Analysts Set Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS) Price Target at $20.25

Shares of Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS) have received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the four brokerages that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and three have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $20.25.

PFS has been the subject of several recent research reports. StockNews.com lowered Provident Financial Services from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on Provident Financial Services from $17.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Provident Financial Services from $18.00 to $21.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Finally, DA Davidson raised shares of Provident Financial Services from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $15.00 to $20.00 in a research note on Monday, April 22nd.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Provident Financial Services

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Signaturefd LLC lifted its position in shares of Provident Financial Services by 991.2% during the second quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,855 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 1,685 shares during the last quarter. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Provident Financial Services during the 2nd quarter valued at about $29,000. TFO Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in Provident Financial Services by 17,508.3% in the 4th quarter. TFO Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,113 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 2,101 shares during the period. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in Provident Financial Services by 43.0% in the 2nd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,050 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $58,000 after acquiring an additional 1,218 shares in the last quarter. Finally, EntryPoint Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Provident Financial Services during the first quarter worth approximately $76,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.97% of the company’s stock.

Provident Financial Services Stock Performance

NYSE PFS opened at $16.80 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.08. Provident Financial Services has a 1-year low of $13.07 and a 1-year high of $19.16. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $15.34 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $15.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.19 billion, a PE ratio of 10.50 and a beta of 1.03.

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The savings and loans company reported ($0.11) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.28 by ($0.39). Provident Financial Services had a net margin of 9.38% and a return on equity of 4.95%. The business had revenue of $141.51 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $148.60 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.45 EPS. Provident Financial Services’s revenue for the quarter was up 42.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Provident Financial Services will post 1.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Provident Financial Services Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 16th will be issued a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 16th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.71%. Provident Financial Services’s payout ratio is 60.00%.

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.