Brokerages Set Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS) Target Price at $23.50

Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS) has earned a consensus rating of “Buy” from the four brokerages that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy recommendation. The average 12-month price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $23.50.

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on PFS. Hovde Group started coverage on shares of Provident Financial Services in a research note on Friday, December 13th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $25.00 price target for the company. StockNews.com cut shares of Provident Financial Services from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, DA Davidson increased their target price on Provident Financial Services from $24.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th.

Provident Financial Services Price Performance

Shares of PFS opened at $18.55 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $2.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.84 and a beta of 1.08. Provident Financial Services has a fifty-two week low of $13.07 and a fifty-two week high of $22.24. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $20.15 and its 200 day moving average price is $18.54.

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

Provident Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 29th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th were given a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.18%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 15th. Provident Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 92.31%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Provident Financial Services news, EVP James A. Christy sold 3,500 shares of Provident Financial Services stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.88, for a total transaction of $73,080.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 34,254 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $715,223.52. The trade was a 9.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 4.29% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Provident Financial Services

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. CIBC Asset Management Inc acquired a new position in Provident Financial Services in the 2nd quarter valued at about $187,000. Rhumbline Advisers lifted its holdings in shares of Provident Financial Services by 68.4% during the second quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 407,581 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $5,849,000 after purchasing an additional 165,554 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System grew its position in Provident Financial Services by 74.8% in the 2nd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 34,496 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $495,000 after buying an additional 14,756 shares during the last quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp grew its position in Provident Financial Services by 66.4% in the 2nd quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp now owns 110,008 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $1,579,000 after buying an additional 43,895 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D acquired a new position in Provident Financial Services in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,914,000. 71.97% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.