StockNews.com Downgrades Peoples Financial Services (NASDAQ:PFIS) to Sell

Peoples Financial Services (NASDAQ:PFIS – Get Rating) was downgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report released on Sunday.

Peoples Financial Services Stock Down 8.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ:PFIS opened at $42.52 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $50.19 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $51.37. The company has a market capitalization of $304.44 million, a PE ratio of 8.05 and a beta of 0.25. Peoples Financial Services has a 52 week low of $41.44 and a 52 week high of $59.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 0.87.

Peoples Financial Services (NASDAQ:PFIS – Get Rating) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 26th. The financial services provider reported $1.49 EPS for the quarter. The business had revenue of $25.64 million for the quarter. Peoples Financial Services had a return on equity of 12.73% and a net margin of 30.92%. Analysts forecast that Peoples Financial Services will post 4.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Peoples Financial Services

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Alliancebernstein L.P. grew its holdings in shares of Peoples Financial Services by 4.9% during the third quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 4,300 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $201,000 after buying an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its stake in shares of Peoples Financial Services by 10.9% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 2,494 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $129,000 after acquiring an additional 245 shares in the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG raised its holdings in shares of Peoples Financial Services by 15.3% in the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 3,277 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $170,000 after purchasing an additional 434 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley lifted its position in shares of Peoples Financial Services by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 14,314 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $742,000 after purchasing an additional 469 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Arbitrage SNC lifted its position in shares of Peoples Financial Services by 31.3% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Arbitrage SNC now owns 2,229 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $104,000 after purchasing an additional 531 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 30.21% of the company’s stock.

About Peoples Financial Services

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Peoples Financial Services Corp. operates as the bank holding company for Peoples Security Bank & Trust Co, which provides financial services to individuals, families, and businesses. It offers home equity loans and lines of credit, construction, commercial and other non-residential real estate loans, consumer loans, multifamily mortgage loans and other loans.