Bank of New York Mellon Corp Sells 47,121 Shares of Provident Financial Services, Inc $PFS

Key Points

• Bank of New York Mellon reduced its Provident Financial Services stake by 3%, selling 47,121 shares and retaining 1.53 million shares valued at approximately $32.4 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 71.97% of PFS.
• Provident Financial Services reported quarterly EPS of $0.61, exceeding analyst expectations of $0.55, while revenue rose 7.9% year over year to $225.2 million. The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.24 per share, representing a 4.0% annualized yield.
• PFS shares opened at $23.86, near their 52-week high of $24.56. Analysts maintain a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating with an average price target of $25.00.

Bank of New York Mellon Corp decreased its stake in shares of Provident Financial Services, Inc (NYSE:PFS - Free Report) by 3.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,531,181 shares of the savings and loans company's stock after selling 47,121 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp owned 1.17% of Provident Financial Services worth $32,400,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund boosted its stake in Provident Financial Services by 3.8% in the 1st quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 68,276 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $1,445,000 after buying an additional 2,473 shares in the last quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Provident Financial Services by 3.4% during the first quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 19,782 shares of the savings and loans company's stock worth $419,000 after purchasing an additional 652 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Provident Financial Services by 10.7% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 827,266 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $17,505,000 after buying an additional 80,147 shares during the period. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky grew its holdings in shares of Provident Financial Services by 5.7% in the 1st quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 32,555 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $689,000 after buying an additional 1,750 shares during the period. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp increased its position in shares of Provident Financial Services by 2,998.8% in the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 29,284 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $620,000 after buying an additional 28,339 shares in the last quarter. 71.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Provident Financial Services Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of Provident Financial Services stock opened at $23.86 on Monday. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $23.04 and its 200 day simple moving average is $22.15. Provident Financial Services, Inc has a 52-week low of $17.61 and a 52-week high of $24.56. The firm has a market cap of $3.11 billion, a PE ratio of 10.15 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.04.

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The savings and loans company reported $0.61 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.55 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $225.20 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $225.62 million. Provident Financial Services had a return on equity of 10.98% and a net margin of 21.95%.The business's quarterly revenue was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.49 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Provident Financial Services, Inc will post 2.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Provident Financial Services Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th were given a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 15th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.0%. Provident Financial Services's payout ratio is 40.85%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on Provident Financial Services from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Weiss Ratings upgraded Provident Financial Services from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Raymond James Financial boosted their price objective on Provident Financial Services from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. DA Davidson reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $23.00 target price on shares of Provident Financial Services in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Stephens initiated coverage on shares of Provident Financial Services in a report on Monday, June 8th. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $24.00 target price on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $25.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO George Lista sold 2,556 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.40, for a total transaction of $57,254.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 109,262 shares in the company, valued at $2,447,468.80. This represents a 2.29% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 3.02% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Provident Financial Services

Provident Financial Services, Inc is the bank holding company for Provident Bank, a regional commercial bank headquartered in Jersey City, New Jersey. The company operates a network of full-service branches across New Jersey, the New York metropolitan area and eastern Pennsylvania, offering a range of personal and business banking solutions.

Its core products and services include checking and savings accounts, consumer and residential mortgage loans, commercial real estate financing and small-business lending.

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