Valley National Advisers Inc. Sells 3,789 Shares of Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS)

Valley National Advisers Inc. lowered its stake in Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS) by 16.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 19,899 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock after selling 3,789 shares during the period. Valley National Advisers Inc.’s holdings in Provident Financial Services were worth $289,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. TFO Wealth Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Provident Financial Services by 17,508.3% in the fourth quarter. TFO Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,113 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 2,101 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Provident Financial Services by 1,728.7% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 7,333 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $132,000 after buying an additional 6,932 shares during the last quarter. Oak Thistle LLC acquired a new position in Provident Financial Services in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $202,000. Everence Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in Provident Financial Services in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $253,000. Finally, Quadrature Capital Ltd acquired a new stake in Provident Financial Services during the 4th quarter worth $336,000. Institutional investors own 71.97% of the company’s stock.

Provident Financial Services Stock Performance

PFS opened at $14.54 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $14.58 and its 200 day simple moving average is $15.42. Provident Financial Services, Inc. has a 12 month low of $13.07 and a 12 month high of $19.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.08 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25.

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) last announced its earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The savings and loans company reported $0.43 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.40 by $0.03. Provident Financial Services had a net margin of 16.78% and a return on equity of 7.31%. The business had revenue of $114.48 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $114.50 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.54 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 12.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Provident Financial Services, Inc. will post 1.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Provident Financial Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 31st. Investors of record on Monday, April 29th were given a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 26th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.60%. Provident Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 60.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on PFS. DA Davidson raised Provident Financial Services from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $15.00 to $20.00 in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. StockNews.com raised shares of Provident Financial Services from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on shares of Provident Financial Services from $20.00 to $17.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Provident Financial Services from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, TheStreet cut shares of Provident Financial Services from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 13th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Provident Financial Services has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $19.00.

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.