Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS) have been given a consensus rating of “Buy” by the four analysts that are covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $24.00.

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on PFS shares. StockNews.com raised Provident Financial Services from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 15th. Hovde Group started coverage on Provident Financial Services in a research note on Friday, December 13th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $25.00 price target on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on Provident Financial Services from $24.00 to $23.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, DA Davidson upped their price target on Provident Financial Services from $24.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th.

Insider Activity at Provident Financial Services

In related news, EVP James A. Christy sold 3,500 shares of the company’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 owns 34,254 shares in the company, valued at approximately $715,223.52. This represents a 9.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 4.29% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Provident Financial Services

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Barclays PLC increased its holdings in shares of Provident Financial Services by 39.8% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 316,953 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $5,883,000 after acquiring an additional 90,238 shares in the last quarter. LMR Partners LLP bought a new stake in shares of Provident Financial Services in the third quarter worth about $508,000. Royce & Associates LP bought a new stake in shares of Provident Financial Services in the third quarter worth about $766,000. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Provident Financial Services by 1.9% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,947,394 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $54,715,000 after acquiring an additional 53,943 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. bought a new stake in shares of Provident Financial Services in the fourth quarter worth about $5,026,000. 71.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Provident Financial Services Price Performance

Provident Financial Services stock opened at $17.96 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.01. The firm has a market cap of $2.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.10 and a beta of 1.07. The business’s fifty day moving average is $18.86 and its two-hundred day moving average is $19.14. Provident Financial Services has a 52 week low of $13.07 and a 52 week high of $22.24.

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The savings and loans company reported $0.37 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.50 by ($0.13). Provident Financial Services had a return on equity of 5.60% and a net margin of 10.13%. Equities research analysts forecast that Provident Financial Services will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Provident Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.35%. Provident Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio is presently 91.43%.

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.