StockNews.com Upgrades Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) to Hold

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) was upgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued on Thursday.

PFS has been the subject of a number of other reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded Provident Financial Services from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their target price for the company from $20.00 to $21.00 in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. DA Davidson increased their price objective on shares of Provident Financial Services from $24.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $23.00.

Provident Financial Services Stock Performance

NYSE:PFS opened at $21.12 on Thursday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $19.61 and its 200-day moving average is $17.50. The company has a market cap of $2.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.31 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03. Provident Financial Services has a 52-week low of $13.07 and a 52-week high of $22.24.

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The savings and loans company reported $0.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.47 by ($0.11). The firm had revenue of $349.38 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $211.25 million. Provident Financial Services had a net margin of 9.55% and a return on equity of 5.21%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.38 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Provident Financial Services will post 1.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Signaturefd LLC grew its stake in Provident Financial Services by 991.2% during the second quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,855 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 1,685 shares during the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its position in Provident Financial Services by 120.6% during the 3rd quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,500 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 820 shares during the last quarter. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Provident Financial Services during the 2nd quarter valued at $29,000. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in Provident Financial Services by 43.0% in the 2nd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,050 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 1,218 shares during the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its position in Provident Financial Services by 1,779.7% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 7,876 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $146,000 after purchasing an additional 7,457 shares during the last quarter. 71.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Provident Financial Services

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.