GAMMA Investing LLC Has $444,000 Holdings in Provident Financial Services, Inc (NYSE:PFS)

GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in Provident Financial Services, Inc (NYSE:PFS - Free Report) by 9,296.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 25,841 shares of the savings and loans company's stock after purchasing an additional 25,566 shares during the quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC's holdings in Provident Financial Services were worth $444,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Savant Capital LLC raised its holdings in Provident Financial Services by 6.5% during the 4th quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 10,931 shares of the savings and loans company's stock worth $206,000 after buying an additional 664 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA increased its position in shares of Provident Financial Services by 5.2% during the fourth quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 14,240 shares of the savings and loans company's stock worth $269,000 after acquiring an additional 704 shares in the last quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Provident Financial Services by 5.7% during the fourth quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 13,172 shares of the savings and loans company's stock worth $249,000 after acquiring an additional 714 shares during the period. Foundry Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Provident Financial Services by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Foundry Partners LLC now owns 191,748 shares of the savings and loans company's stock worth $3,618,000 after acquiring an additional 730 shares during the period. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc lifted its position in Provident Financial Services by 6.1% in the 4th quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 13,422 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $253,000 after acquiring an additional 772 shares in the last quarter. 71.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Chairman Christopher P. Martin sold 55,668 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.07, for a total value of $950,252.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 601,050 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,259,923.50. This trade represents a 8.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 3.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price 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. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $24.25.

Provident Financial Services Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of NYSE PFS traded up $0.07 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $16.21. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,019,681 shares, compared to its average volume of 723,213. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $16.63 and a 200-day simple moving average of $17.69. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.60 and a beta of 0.86. Provident Financial Services, Inc has a fifty-two week low of $13.07 and a fifty-two week 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 for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.47 by $0.03. Provident Financial Services had a net margin of 11.45% and a return on equity of 6.38%. The business had revenue of $208.76 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $206.86 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.43 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 82.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Provident Financial Services, Inc will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Provident Financial Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 30th. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th were given a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.92%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 16th. Provident Financial Services's dividend payout ratio is currently 86.49%.

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.