Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) Shares Pass Above 200-Day Moving Average – Here’s What Happened

Provident Financial Services, Inc (NYSE:PFS) shares passed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Wednesday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $21.95 and traded as high as $23.83. Provident Financial Services shares last traded at $23.6050, with a volume of 855,610 shares trading hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PFS has been the subject of several research reports. Weiss Ratings upgraded Provident Financial Services from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on Provident Financial Services from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Stephens assumed coverage on shares of Provident Financial Services in a report on Monday, June 8th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $24.00 price objective on the stock. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $23.00 price objective on shares of Provident Financial Services in a report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Raymond James Financial increased their target price on shares of Provident Financial Services from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $24.79.

Provident Financial Services Trading Down 2.1%

The stock has a market cap of $3.13 billion, a PE ratio of 10.24 and a beta of 0.78. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $22.80 and a 200-day simple moving average of $21.98. 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 (NYSE:PFS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The savings and loans company reported $0.61 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.55 by $0.06. Provident Financial Services had a return on equity of 10.98% and a net margin of 21.95%.The firm had revenue of $225.20 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $225.62 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.49 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Provident Financial Services, Inc will post 2.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Provident Financial Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th were paid a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 15th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.0%. Provident Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 40.85%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Provident Financial Services news, CEO George Lista sold 2,556 shares of Provident Financial Services stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.40, for a total transaction of $57,254.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 109,262 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,447,468.80. The trade was a 2.29% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 3.02% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Provident Financial Services

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of PFS. Key Capital Management INC purchased a new position in Provident Financial Services during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Provident Financial Services by 358.0% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,548 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 1,210 shares during the period. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. bought a new position in Provident Financial Services in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Danske Bank A S bought a new position in Provident Financial Services in the 3rd quarter valued at $58,000. Finally, Exchange Traded Concepts LLC purchased a new position in shares of Provident Financial Services during the 4th quarter valued at $73,000. 71.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Provident Financial Services

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.