Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Trims Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) Target Price to $17.00

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) had its price target cut by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $20.00 to $17.00 in a research report report published on Tuesday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have a market perform rating on the savings and loans company’s stock.

Separately, TheStreet lowered Provident Financial Services from a b- rating to a c+ rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $17.75.

Provident Financial Services Price Performance

Shares of PFS opened at $14.57 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.07. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $15.51 and a 200 day simple moving average of $15.79. Provident Financial Services has a 52-week low of $13.43 and a 52-week high of $19.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.10 billion, a PE ratio of 8.52 and a beta of 1.07.

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 26th. The savings and loans company reported $0.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.40 by ($0.04). Provident Financial Services had a net margin of 18.46% and a return on equity of 7.88%. The business had revenue of $114.76 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $114.30 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.66 earnings per share. Provident Financial Services’s revenue for the quarter was down 13.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Provident Financial Services will post 1.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Provident Financial Services Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 23rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 9th were given a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 8th. Provident Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 56.14%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Provident Financial Services

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in PFS. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. raised its stake in Provident Financial Services by 35.7% in the 1st quarter. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. now owns 1,785 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 470 shares during the period. Federated Hermes Inc. raised its stake in Provident Financial Services by 132.8% in the 3rd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 1,867 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 1,065 shares during the period. Point72 Middle East FZE bought a new stake in Provident Financial Services in the 4th quarter valued at $43,000. TFO Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake 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 acquiring an additional 2,101 shares during the period. Finally, First Manhattan Co. raised its stake in Provident Financial Services by 106.8% in the 4th quarter. First Manhattan Co. now owns 2,130 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 1,100 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 71.97% of the company’s stock.

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.