Brevan Howard Capital Management LP Makes New Investment in Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS)

Brevan Howard Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 23,281 shares of the savings and loans company's stock, valued at approximately $439,000.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Provident Financial Services by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,605,199 shares of the savings and loans company's stock worth $275,600,000 after acquiring an additional 51,253 shares during the period. PL Capital Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Provident Financial Services by 1,787.0% during the fourth quarter. PL Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,533,618 shares of the savings and loans company's stock worth $47,809,000 after purchasing an additional 2,399,351 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its stake in Provident Financial Services by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,456,401 shares of the savings and loans company's stock worth $46,352,000 after purchasing an additional 81,617 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Provident Financial Services by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,825,993 shares of the savings and loans company's stock worth $34,456,000 after purchasing an additional 33,201 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC lifted its stake in Provident Financial Services by 6.9% during the fourth quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 1,692,001 shares of the savings and loans company's stock worth $31,928,000 after purchasing an additional 109,923 shares during the last quarter. 71.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Provident Financial Services Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE PFS traded up $0.08 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $17.78. The company's stock had a trading volume of 105,736 shares, compared to its average volume of 831,236. Provident Financial Services, Inc. has a 12-month low of $13.07 and a 12-month high of $22.24. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $16.48 and a 200-day moving average price of $18.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.91 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 1.01.

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The savings and loans company reported $0.50 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.47 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $208.76 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $206.86 million. Provident Financial Services had a return on equity of 5.60% and a net margin of 10.13%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 82.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.43 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Provident Financial Services, Inc. will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Provident Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be given a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.40%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. Provident Financial Services's payout ratio is 86.49%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on Provident Financial Services from $24.00 to $23.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on Provident Financial Services from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Provident Financial Services from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, February 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Provident Financial Services presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $24.25.

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.