Provident Financial Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PROV) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Provident Financial Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PROV) saw a significant growth in short interest in the month of January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totaling 32,859 shares, a growth of 67.4% from the December 31st total of 19,626 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 5,516 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 6.0 days. Approximately 0.6% of the shares of the company are short sold. Approximately 0.6% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 5,516 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 6.0 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on PROV. Piper Sandler cut their price objective on Provident Financial from $16.50 to $16.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Zacks Research raised shares of Provident Financial from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Provident Financial in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat, Provident Financial presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $16.00.

Provident Financial Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of NASDAQ PROV traded down $0.04 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $16.16. 2,029 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,024. The stock has a market capitalization of $104.56 million, a P/E ratio of 16.32 and a beta of 0.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a current ratio of 1.23. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $15.85 and a 200 day simple moving average of $15.63. Provident Financial has a twelve month low of $12.98 and a twelve month high of $16.35.

Provident Financial (NASDAQ:PROV) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.22 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.30 by ($0.08). Provident Financial had a return on equity of 5.13% and a net margin of 10.97%.The business had revenue of $14.87 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.10 million. As a group, equities analysts expect that Provident Financial will post 0.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Provident Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 5th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 12th will be given a $0.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 12th. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.5%. Provident Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 56.57%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Provident Financial

In other Provident Financial news, SVP Gwendolyn Wertz sold 4,800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.64, for a total value of $75,072.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 20,537 shares in the company, valued at approximately $321,198.68. This represents a 18.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 11.49% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of PROV. Fourthstone LLC increased its stake in shares of Provident Financial by 31.4% during the second quarter. Fourthstone LLC now owns 115,210 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,786,000 after buying an additional 27,556 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in Provident Financial by 7.9% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 29,084 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $424,000 after acquiring an additional 2,120 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Susquehanna International Group LLP acquired a new position in Provident Financial during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $273,000. 71.34% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Provident Financial Company Profile

Provident Financial Services, Inc (NASDAQ: PROV) is a bank holding company headquartered in Jersey City, New Jersey, that conducts its operations through its wholly owned subsidiary, Provident Bank. With origins dating back to 1839, the company has grown into a full-service financial institution offering a broad spectrum of products and services to individuals, small businesses and commercial clients.

The company’s principal business activities include retail banking, commercial lending, mortgage finance and wealth management.