Rafferty Asset Management LLC Decreases Stake in Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS)

Rafferty Asset Management LLC decreased its position in shares of Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS - Free Report) by 28.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 133,659 shares of the savings and loans company's stock after selling 51,914 shares during the period. Rafferty Asset Management LLC owned 0.10% of Provident Financial Services worth $2,522,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of PFS. Aquatic Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Provident Financial Services in the fourth quarter worth $46,000. Federated Hermes Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Provident Financial Services in the fourth quarter worth $55,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Provident Financial Services by 805.9% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 3,968 shares of the savings and loans company's stock worth $75,000 after buying an additional 3,530 shares during the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC purchased a new position in shares of Provident Financial Services in the fourth quarter worth $99,000. Finally, KBC Group NV raised its holdings in shares of Provident Financial Services by 40.7% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 6,387 shares of the savings and loans company's stock worth $121,000 after buying an additional 1,848 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.97% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have issued reports on PFS. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on shares of 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 upgraded shares of Provident Financial Services from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, February 15th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on shares of Provident Financial Services from $24.00 to $23.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $24.25.

Provident Financial Services Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:PFS traded down $0.17 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $16.52. The company's stock had a trading volume of 459,157 shares, compared to its average volume of 749,657. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.16 billion, a PE ratio of 15.73 and a beta of 0.84. Provident Financial Services, Inc. has a twelve month low of $13.07 and a twelve month high of $22.24. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $16.54 and a 200 day moving average of $18.29. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95.

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

Provident Financial Services Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th will be given a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.81%. Provident Financial Services's dividend payout ratio 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.