Provident Financial Services, Inc (NYSE:PFS) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Provident Financial Services, Inc (NYSE:PFS) have been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the seven research firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, two have issued a buy recommendation and two have assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $24.0833.

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings lowered Provident Financial Services from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Thursday, March 12th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on Provident Financial Services from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. DA Davidson assumed coverage on Provident Financial Services in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $25.00 target price on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $25.00 price target on Provident Financial Services in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Piper Sandler started coverage on Provident Financial Services in a report on Monday, March 16th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $25.00 price target for the company.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of PFS. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Provident Financial Services by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 45,333 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $895,000 after purchasing an additional 456 shares during the last quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund boosted its holdings in Provident Financial Services by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 29,888 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $590,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in Provident Financial Services by 45.0% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,767 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 548 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System increased its position in Provident Financial Services by 1.5% during the third quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 36,730 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $708,000 after buying an additional 549 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amalgamated Bank raised its holdings in Provident Financial Services by 1.7% during the third quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 37,828 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $729,000 after buying an additional 618 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.97% of the company’s stock.

Provident Financial Services Stock Down 1.7%

Provident Financial Services stock opened at $20.57 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $2.69 billion, a PE ratio of 9.22 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.02. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $21.65 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $20.24. Provident Financial Services has a twelve month low of $14.34 and a twelve month high of $23.98.

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The savings and loans company reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by $0.08. Provident Financial Services had a net margin of 21.06% and a return on equity of 10.69%. The company had revenue of $225.03 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $224.08 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.37 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Provident Financial Services will post 2.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Provident Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 27th. Investors of record on Friday, February 13th were given a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 13th. Provident Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 43.05%.

Provident Financial Services announced that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Monday, January 26th that allows the company to repurchase $2.81 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the savings and loans company to purchase up to 0.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Provident Financial Services Company Profile

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.