BNP Paribas Financial Markets Trims Stock Holdings in Peoples Financial Services Corp. (NASDAQ:PFIS)

BNP Paribas Financial Markets reduced its stake in Peoples Financial Services Corp. (NASDAQ:PFIS) by 44.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,122 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 887 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets’ holdings in Peoples Financial Services were worth $57,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of PFIS. Hoey Investments Inc. purchased a new stake in Peoples Financial Services in the 4th quarter valued at about $126,000. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its holdings in Peoples Financial Services by 21.6% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 3,873 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $198,000 after buying an additional 688 shares during the period. Martingale Asset Management L P raised its holdings in Peoples Financial Services by 11.9% in the 4th quarter. Martingale Asset Management L P now owns 5,373 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $275,000 after buying an additional 570 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP purchased a new stake in Peoples Financial Services in the 4th quarter valued at about $310,000. Finally, State of Tennessee Department of Treasury purchased a new stake in Peoples Financial Services in the 4th quarter valued at about $361,000. 31.67% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Peoples Financial Services Stock Down 0.8%

Shares of PFIS opened at $47.66 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $476.36 million, a P/E ratio of 42.18 and a beta of 0.70. Peoples Financial Services Corp. has a 12-month low of $37.62 and a 12-month high of $59.70. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $45.28 and its 200 day moving average price is $48.91. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

Peoples Financial Services (NASDAQ:PFIS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The financial services provider reported $1.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $62.43 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $44.35 million. Peoples Financial Services had a net margin of 3.70% and a return on equity of 8.97%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Peoples Financial Services Corp. will post 5.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Peoples Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.6175 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 30th. This represents a $2.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.18%. Peoples Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 115.96%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Peoples Financial Services news, Director Richard S. Lochen, Jr. purchased 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $47.12 per share, for a total transaction of $47,120.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 17,129 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $807,118.48. This trade represents a 6.20% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 8.00% of the company’s stock.

Peoples Financial Services Company Profile

Peoples Financial Services Corp. operates as the bank holding company for Peoples Security Bank and Trust Company that provides various commercial and retail banking services. The company accepts money market, negotiable order of withdrawal, savings, individual retirement, demand deposit, and certificates of deposit accounts.