DA Davidson Trims Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) Target Price to $15.00

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) had its price objective reduced by DA Davidson from $17.00 to $15.00 in a report released on Thursday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the savings and loans company’s stock.

A number of other research analysts have also recently weighed in on PFS. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on Provident Financial Services from $21.00 to $19.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on Provident Financial Services from $20.00 to $17.00 and set a market perform rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Finally, TheStreet cut Provident Financial Services from a b- rating to a c+ rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $17.75.

Provident Financial Services Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:PFS opened at $14.57 on Thursday. Provident Financial Services has a 52 week low of $13.43 and a 52 week high of $19.80. The company has a market cap of $1.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.52 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $15.56 and a 200-day simple moving average of $15.80.

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 26th. The savings and loans company reported $0.36 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by ($0.04). Provident Financial Services had a net margin of 18.46% and a return on equity of 7.88%. The firm had revenue of $114.76 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $114.30 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.66 EPS. Provident Financial Services’s revenue was down 13.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Provident Financial Services will post 1.68 EPS for the current year.

Provident Financial Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 23rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 9th were paid a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 8th. Provident Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio is presently 56.14%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Robert Mcnerney sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.86, for a total value of $89,300.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 9,475 shares in the company, valued at $169,223.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 4.29% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. IFP Advisors Inc bought a new stake in Provident Financial Services in the third quarter valued at about $271,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Provident Financial Services by 7.3% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 889,829 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $13,605,000 after buying an additional 60,765 shares during the last quarter. Swiss National Bank increased its holdings in Provident Financial Services by 0.9% in the second quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 155,800 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $2,546,000 after buying an additional 1,400 shares during the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. increased its holdings in Provident Financial Services by 76.4% in the third quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 109,041 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $1,667,000 after buying an additional 47,217 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund bought a new stake in Provident Financial Services in the third quarter valued at about $681,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.97% of the company’s stock.

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.