The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Has $1.27 Million Stock Position in Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS)

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its position in Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS) by 5.9% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 68,346 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock after buying an additional 3,829 shares during the quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company’s holdings in Provident Financial Services were worth $1,269,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in PFS. Signaturefd LLC increased its holdings in shares of Provident Financial Services by 991.2% in the second quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,855 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 1,685 shares during the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Provident Financial Services by 43.0% in the second 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. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Provident Financial Services by 1,779.7% in the third 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. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Provident Financial Services during the second quarter worth approximately $163,000. Finally, Algert Global LLC acquired a new stake in Provident Financial Services during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $178,000. 71.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on PFS shares. DA Davidson lifted their target price on Provident Financial Services from $24.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. StockNews.com upgraded Provident Financial Services from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 28th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded Provident Financial Services from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $20.00 to $21.00 in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Provident Financial Services currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $23.00.

Provident Financial Services Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:PFS opened at $20.56 on Thursday. Provident Financial Services, Inc. has a 1 year low of $13.07 and a 1 year high of $22.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.77 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $19.99 and its 200 day simple moving average is $17.79.

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

Provident Financial Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th were paid a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 15th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.67%. Provident Financial Services’s payout ratio is currently 92.31%.

Provident Financial Services 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.