Man Group plc Invests $296,000 in Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS)

Man Group plc purchased a new stake in shares of Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 15,668 shares of the savings and loans company's stock, valued at approximately $296,000.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in PFS. Aquatic Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Provident Financial Services during the fourth quarter worth $46,000. Federated Hermes Inc. bought a new position in shares of Provident Financial Services in the 4th quarter valued at about $55,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Provident Financial Services by 805.9% during the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 3,968 shares of the savings and loans company's stock worth $75,000 after purchasing an additional 3,530 shares in the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in Provident Financial Services in the fourth quarter valued at $99,000. Finally, KBC Group NV raised its holdings in shares of Provident Financial Services by 40.7% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 6,387 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $121,000 after purchasing an additional 1,848 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 71.97% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PFS has been the subject of several research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on Provident Financial Services from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 28th. Wall Street Zen raised 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 issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Provident Financial Services has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $24.25.

Provident Financial Services Trading Down 0.7%

NYSE PFS traded down $0.11 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $16.69. 571,769 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 739,528. The firm has a market cap of $2.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.90 and a beta of 0.84. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $16.50 and a 200 day simple moving average of $18.12. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95. Provident Financial Services, Inc. has a 1-year low of $13.07 and a 1-year high of $22.24.

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The savings and loans company reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.47 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $208.76 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $206.86 million. Provident Financial Services had a net margin of 10.13% and a return on equity of 5.60%. Provident Financial Services's quarterly revenue was up 82.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.43 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Provident Financial Services, Inc. will post 2.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Provident Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th were paid a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 16th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.75%. Provident Financial Services's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 86.49%.

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.