Peoples Financial Services (NASDAQ:PFIS) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume – Here’s What Happened

Peoples Financial Services Corp. (NASDAQ:PFIS) shares saw unusually-strong trading volume on Friday . Approximately 20,902 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 16% from the previous session’s volume of 18,092 shares.The stock last traded at $50.7550 and had previously closed at $49.92.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have commented on PFIS shares. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Peoples Financial Services in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Hovde Group reduced their price objective on Peoples Financial Services from $54.00 to $50.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 3rd. Stephens set a $50.00 price target on shares of Peoples Financial Services and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Peoples Financial Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 17th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $50.00.

Peoples Financial Services Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $520.48 million, a P/E ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 0.81. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $50.16 and its 200 day simple moving average is $49.60. The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45.

Peoples Financial Services (NASDAQ:PFIS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $1.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.52 by ($0.16). The business had revenue of $89.23 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $48.25 million. Peoples Financial Services had a return on equity of 18.32% and a net margin of 20.17%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Peoples Financial Services Corp. will post 5.92 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Peoples Financial Services

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its stake in Peoples Financial Services by 4.4% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 5,513 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $245,000 after buying an additional 234 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its stake in Peoples Financial Services by 59.1% in the second quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 969 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 360 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Peoples Financial Services by 6.3% during the second quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 6,397 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $316,000 after buying an additional 381 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Peoples Financial Services by 5.8% during the 3rd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 7,768 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $366,000 after buying an additional 427 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stoneridge Investment Partners LLC raised its position in Peoples Financial Services by 7.9% during the third quarter. Stoneridge Investment Partners LLC now owns 6,125 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $298,000 after acquiring an additional 451 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 31.67% of the company’s stock.

Peoples Financial Services Company Profile

Peoples Financial Services Corporation is the bank holding company for PeoplesBank, a community-focused commercial bank headquartered in Holyoke, Massachusetts. Through its wholly owned subsidiary, PeoplesBank, PFIS offers a full suite of banking services to individuals, small businesses, and commercial clients. These services include deposit accounts, consumer and residential mortgage lending, commercial and industrial lending, and treasury management solutions.

Founded in 1842, PeoplesBank has grown organically and through selective acquisitions to become a prominent community bank in Western Massachusetts and Northern Connecticut.