Stock Buyback Program Announced by Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) Board of Directors

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Monday, January 26th, RTT News reports. The company plans to repurchase $2.81 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the savings and loans company to reacquire up to 0.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Provident Financial Services in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. DA Davidson cut Provident Financial Services from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Provident Financial Services currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $22.70.

Provident Financial Services Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:PFS opened at $20.81 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $2.72 billion, a PE ratio of 10.62 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.02. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $20.08 and a 200-day moving average of $19.38. Provident Financial Services has a one year low of $14.34 and a one year high of $21.71.

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 27th. The savings and loans company reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by $0.08. Provident Financial Services had a return on equity of 9.62% and a net margin of 18.76%.The company had revenue of $224.74 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $224.08 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.37 earnings per share. Provident Financial Services’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Provident Financial Services will post 2.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Provident Financial Services Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 14th were issued a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.6%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 14th. Provident Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 48.98%.

Key Provident Financial Services News

Here are the key news stories impacting Provident Financial Services this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 earnings beat — Provident reported EPS of $0.64 vs. the Zacks/consensus $0.56 estimate, up from $0.37 a year ago; net income was $83.4M, and profitability metrics (net margin ~18.8%, ROE ~9.6%) improved, supporting stronger near-term earnings visibility. Provident Financial (PFS) Q4 Earnings and Revenues Beat Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Material buyback authorization — the Board approved a tenth repurchase program allowing repurchases of ~2.81M shares (~2.15% of outstanding), with no set expiration; management framed this as confidence in capital strength and a way to return capital and enhance shareholder value. This reduces share count potential and is typically supportive of the stock. Provident Financial Services, Inc. Announces Authorization of New Stock Repurchase Program
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings release & calls — the company filed formal Q4 and full-year results and held the earnings call/transcript (useful for detail on margin drivers, credit trends and capital plans); no explicit forward guidance change was announced in the releases. Provident Financial Services, Inc. Announces Fourth Quarter and Full Year Earnings, and Annual Meeting Date Earnings Call Transcript
• Neutral Sentiment: Community and CSR activity — Provident Bank announced an additional $50k in grants to local nonprofits; positive for reputation but unlikely to move stock materially. Provident Bank Announces an Additional $50,000 in Grants
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling noted — recent data show several insider sales over the past six months (multiple executives have sold shares), which some investors view as a cautionary signal even though buybacks and management commentary offset that concern. QuiverQuant summary (includes insider activity)

Insider Buying and Selling at Provident Financial Services

In other news, CEO George Lista sold 8,262 shares of Provident Financial Services stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.35, for a total value of $151,607.70. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 108,656 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,993,837.60. This trade represents a 7.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 3.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Provident Financial Services Company 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.