Provident Financial Services, Inc (NYSE:PFS) Receives $23.93 Consensus PT from Analysts

Provident Financial Services, Inc (NYSE:PFS) has received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eight research firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $23.9286.

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on Provident Financial Services from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. 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. Piper Sandler began coverage on 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. Stephens began coverage on Provident Financial Services in a research report on Monday, June 8th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $24.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Provident Financial Services from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st.

Insider Activity at Provident Financial Services

In other news, CEO George Lista sold 2,556 shares of the firm’s 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 sale, the chief executive officer owned 109,262 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,447,468.80. This trade represents a 2.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 3.02% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Provident Financial Services

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of PFS. Royal Bank of Canada raised its position in shares of Provident Financial Services by 23.9% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 44,106 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $758,000 after purchasing an additional 8,507 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its position in Provident Financial Services by 4.6% in the 1st 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 buying an additional 3,277 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its position in Provident Financial Services by 6.3% in the 1st 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 buying an additional 15,112 shares during the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC raised its position in Provident Financial Services by 247.5% in the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 312,478 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $5,365,000 after buying an additional 222,549 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC raised its position in Provident Financial Services by 45.6% in the 1st quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 73,261 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $1,258,000 after buying an additional 22,961 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.97% of the company’s stock.

Provident Financial Services Price Performance

Shares of PFS opened at $23.08 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. Provident Financial Services has a 1 year low of $15.92 and a 1 year high of $23.98. The stock has a market cap of $3.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.82 and a beta of 0.78. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $22.32 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $21.47.

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) last issued its earnings results 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. 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $225.62 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.49 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Provident Financial Services will post 2.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Provident Financial Services Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th were given a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 15th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.2%. Provident Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 40.85%.

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.