Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS) Shares Sold by New York State Teachers Retirement System

New York State Teachers Retirement System cut its holdings in shares of Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS) by 14.6% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 29,582 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock after selling 5,049 shares during the quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System’s holdings in Provident Financial Services were worth $549,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Provident Financial Services by 51.6% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 7,787,088 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $111,740,000 after buying an additional 2,649,643 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its holdings in Provident Financial Services by 4,245.5% during the 2nd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 3,996,954 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $56,877,000 after acquiring an additional 3,904,975 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. increased its position in shares of Provident Financial Services by 9.7% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,550,462 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $36,599,000 after purchasing an additional 225,839 shares during the last quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP raised its holdings in shares of Provident Financial Services by 125.3% in the 2nd quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP now owns 1,690,155 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $24,254,000 after purchasing an additional 939,951 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in shares of Provident Financial Services by 56.6% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,612,246 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $23,136,000 after purchasing an additional 582,844 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.97% of the company’s stock.

Provident Financial Services Stock Performance

Shares of PFS opened at $21.18 on Monday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $18.78 and its 200-day simple moving average is $16.91. Provident Financial Services, Inc. has a 12-month low of $13.07 and a 12-month high of $22.00. The firm has a market cap of $2.76 billion, a PE ratio of 20.37 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02.

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The savings and loans company reported $0.36 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.47 by ($0.11). Provident Financial Services had a net margin of 9.55% and a return on equity of 5.21%. The business had revenue of $349.38 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $211.25 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.38 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Provident Financial Services, Inc. will post 1.84 EPS for the current year.

Provident Financial Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. Provident Financial Services’s payout ratio is currently 92.31%.

Insider Transactions at Provident Financial Services

In related news, EVP Vito Giannola sold 5,499 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.09, for a total transaction of $99,476.91. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 88,656 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,603,787.04. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 4.29% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have issued reports on PFS shares. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on Provident Financial Services from $18.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Provident Financial Services from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded shares of Provident Financial Services from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $20.00 to $21.00 in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Provident Financial Services presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $20.67.

Provident Financial Services Company Profile

Provident Financial Services, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Provident Bank that provides various banking products and services to individuals, families, and businesses in the United States. Its deposit products include savings, checking, interest-bearing checking, money market deposit, and certificate of deposit accounts, as well as IRA products.