Peoples Financial Services (NASDAQ:PFIS) Hits New 12-Month High – What’s Next?

Peoples Financial Services Corp. (NASDAQ:PFIS) shares reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $65.09 and last traded at $64.80, with a volume of 12893 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $64.24.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PFIS has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Peoples Financial Services in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. Hovde Group increased their price objective on shares of Peoples Financial Services from $59.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Peoples Financial Services presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $58.50.

Peoples Financial Services Trading Up 1.4%

The company’s fifty day moving average price is $59.21 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $54.89. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The firm has a market cap of $651.80 million, a P/E ratio of 7.22 and a beta of 0.77.

Peoples Financial Services (NASDAQ:PFIS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.43 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.54 by ($0.11). The business had revenue of $92.63 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $49.95 million. Peoples Financial Services had a return on equity of 18.06% and a net margin of 21.29%.

Peoples Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 29th were given a dividend of $0.625 per share. This represents a $2.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 29th. Peoples Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio is presently 27.69%.

Institutional Trading of Peoples Financial Services

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its stake in Peoples Financial Services by 44.8% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 8,198 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $364,000 after acquiring an additional 2,538 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its position in shares of Peoples Financial Services by 4.4% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 5,513 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $245,000 after acquiring an additional 234 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in shares of Peoples Financial Services by 7.1% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 40,651 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,808,000 after purchasing an additional 2,679 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Peoples Financial Services in the 1st quarter valued at $467,000. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers boosted its position in shares of Peoples Financial Services by 4.5% in the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 13,842 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $683,000 after purchasing an additional 597 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 31.67% of the company’s stock.

About Peoples Financial Services

Peoples Financial Services Corporation is the bank holding company for PeoplesBank, a community-focused commercial bank headquartered in Holyoke, Massachusetts. Through its wholly owned subsidiary, PeoplesBank, PFIS offers a full suite of banking services to individuals, small businesses, and commercial clients. These services include deposit accounts, consumer and residential mortgage lending, commercial and industrial lending, and treasury management solutions.

Founded in 1842, PeoplesBank has grown organically and through selective acquisitions to become a prominent community bank in Western Massachusetts and Northern Connecticut.