American Century Companies Inc. Grows Stock Holdings in Provident Financial Services, Inc $PFS

Key Points

• American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in Provident Financial Services by 5.2% to 2,584,298 shares, valued at approximately $44.37 million.
• Provident Financial Services reported a quarterly earnings per share of $0.55, exceeding analysts' expectations of $0.50, indicating strong financial performance for the company.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.24 per share, which yields 5.1% annually, with an ex-dividend date set for August 15.

American Century Companies Inc. increased its position in shares of Provident Financial Services, Inc (NYSE:PFS - Free Report) by 5.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,584,298 shares of the savings and loans company's stock after purchasing an additional 127,897 shares during the quarter. American Century Companies Inc. owned 1.98% of Provident Financial Services worth $44,372,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Provident Financial Services by 447.3% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,505 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 1,230 shares during the period. Aquatic Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Provident Financial Services in the 4th quarter valued at $46,000. Byrne Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Provident Financial Services by 193.8% in the 1st quarter. Byrne Asset Management LLC now owns 2,938 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 1,938 shares during the period. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its position in 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 acquiring an additional 3,530 shares during the period. Finally, Entropy Technologies LP purchased a new stake in shares of Provident Financial Services during the 1st quarter worth about $178,000. 71.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on shares of Provident Financial Services from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 28th. DA Davidson boosted their target price on Provident Financial Services from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, July 28th. Raymond James Financial assumed coverage on Provident Financial Services in a report on Thursday, June 26th. They issued a "strong-buy" rating and a $21.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Hovde Group boosted their target price on Provident Financial Services from $22.50 to $23.50 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, July 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and four have issued a Buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $22.70.

Provident Financial Services Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of PFS stock traded up $0.06 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $19.76. The company's stock had a trading volume of 44,526 shares, compared to its average volume of 653,035. Provident Financial Services, Inc has a 52 week low of $14.34 and a 52 week high of $22.24. The company has a market cap of $2.58 billion, a PE ratio of 11.16 and a beta of 0.89. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $18.27 and its 200-day simple moving average is $17.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03.

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The savings and loans company reported $0.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.50 by $0.05. Provident Financial Services had a return on equity of 8.80% and a net margin of 16.97%.The business had revenue of $214.17 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $213.39 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned ($0.11) EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Provident Financial Services, Inc will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Provident Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be given a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.9%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. Provident Financial Services's dividend payout ratio is presently 54.24%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Provident Financial Services

In other news, Chairman Christopher P. Martin sold 55,668 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.07, for a total transaction of $950,252.76. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman directly owned 601,050 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,259,923.50. This represents a 8.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 3.10% of the company's stock.

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.