Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS) Shares Purchased by Deutsche Bank AG

Deutsche Bank AG raised its position in Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS - Free Report) by 27.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 101,830 shares of the savings and loans company's stock after purchasing an additional 21,993 shares during the quarter. Deutsche Bank AG owned 0.08% of Provident Financial Services worth $1,922,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PFS. Barclays PLC lifted its position in shares of Provident Financial Services by 39.8% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 316,953 shares of the savings and loans company's stock worth $5,883,000 after purchasing an additional 90,238 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in Provident Financial Services by 23.2% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 980,654 shares of the savings and loans company's stock worth $18,505,000 after buying an additional 184,799 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Provident Financial Services by 1.9% during the 4th 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 buying an additional 33,201 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in Provident Financial Services in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $513,000. Finally, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans grew its stake in shares of Provident Financial Services by 54.6% in the fourth quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 158,433 shares of the savings and loans company's stock worth $2,990,000 after acquiring an additional 55,964 shares in the last quarter. 71.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Provident Financial Services Stock Up 2.4%

Shares of Provident Financial Services stock traded up $0.39 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $16.89. 383,151 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 748,191. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 1.01. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $16.53 and its 200 day moving average price is $18.25. The stock has a market cap of $2.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.09 and a beta of 0.84. Provident Financial Services, Inc. has a 12-month low of $13.07 and a 12-month high of $22.24.

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 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.47 by $0.03. Provident Financial Services had a return on equity of 5.60% and a net margin of 10.13%. The company had revenue of $208.76 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $206.86 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.43 earnings per share. Provident Financial Services's quarterly revenue was up 82.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast 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, May 30th. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th will be issued a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.68%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. Provident Financial Services's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 86.49%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on Provident Financial Services from $24.00 to $23.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Provident Financial Services from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, February 15th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $24.25.

Provident Financial Services Company 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.