UBS Group AG Sells 26,439 Shares of Provident Financial Services, Inc $PFS

UBS Group AG cut its stake in Provident Financial Services, Inc (NYSE:PFS) by 6.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 355,969 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock after selling 26,439 shares during the quarter. UBS Group AG owned approximately 0.27% of Provident Financial Services worth $7,030,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of PFS. Royal Bank of Canada raised its position in shares of Provident Financial Services by 23.9% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 44,106 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $758,000 after purchasing an additional 8,507 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its position in shares of Provident Financial Services by 4.6% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 74,926 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $1,286,000 after purchasing an additional 3,277 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its position in shares of Provident Financial Services by 6.3% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 256,739 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $4,408,000 after purchasing an additional 15,112 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC raised its position in shares of Provident Financial Services by 247.5% in the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 312,478 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $5,365,000 after purchasing an additional 222,549 shares during the period. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Provident Financial Services by 45.6% in the first quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 73,261 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $1,258,000 after purchasing an additional 22,961 shares during the period. 71.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Provident Financial Services

In other Provident Financial Services news, CEO George Lista sold 2,556 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.40, for a total transaction of $57,254.40. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 109,262 shares in the company, valued at $2,447,468.80. This represents a 2.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 3.02% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Provident Financial Services Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of Provident Financial Services stock opened at $21.69 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $2.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.23 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. Provident Financial Services, Inc has a 12-month low of $15.92 and a 12-month high of $23.98. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $21.64 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $20.95.

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The savings and loans company reported $0.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.55 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $225.20 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $225.62 million. Provident Financial Services had a net margin of 21.95% and a return on equity of 10.98%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.49 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Provident Financial Services, Inc will post 2.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Provident Financial Services announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Monday, January 26th that authorizes the company to repurchase $2.81 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the savings and loans company to repurchase up to 0.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Provident Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.4%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 15th. Provident Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio is presently 40.85%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently commented on PFS. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $25.00 price target on shares of Provident Financial Services in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $23.00 price target on shares of Provident Financial Services in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on shares of Provident Financial Services from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Piper Sandler began coverage on shares of Provident Financial Services in a research report on Monday, March 16th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $25.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Provident Financial Services from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Provident Financial Services currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $23.92.

Provident Financial Services Profile

Provident Financial Services, Inc is the bank holding company for Provident Bank, a regional commercial bank headquartered in Jersey City, New Jersey. The company operates a network of full-service branches across New Jersey, the New York metropolitan area and eastern Pennsylvania, offering a range of personal and business banking solutions.

Its core products and services include checking and savings accounts, consumer and residential mortgage loans, commercial real estate financing and small-business lending.