Sax Wealth Advisors LLC Makes New Investment in Provident Financial Services, Inc $PFS

Key Points

• Sax Wealth Advisors initiated a 61,288-share position in Provident Financial Services during the third quarter, valued at approximately $1.36 million. Institutional investors collectively own 71.97% of the company.
• Provident Financial Services reported quarterly earnings of $0.60 per share, exceeding estimates by $0.04, while revenue of $234.96 million also surpassed expectations. The company pays a quarterly dividend of $0.24 per share, representing a 4.4% annualized yield.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with the stock carrying a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $26.79. Shares recently opened at $21.95, below the analyst target but down 0.4%.

Sax Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Provident Financial Services, Inc (NYSE:PFS - Free Report) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 61,288 shares of the savings and loans company's stock, valued at approximately $1,358,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in PFS. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Provident Financial Services by 3.3% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 8,070,734 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $170,775,000 after purchasing an additional 256,540 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new position in shares of Provident Financial Services in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $36,916,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its holdings in shares of Provident Financial Services by 6.9% in the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 998,562 shares of the savings and loans company's stock worth $23,606,000 after purchasing an additional 64,251 shares during the period. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Provident Financial Services by 23.6% during the 4th quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 896,079 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $17,698,000 after purchasing an additional 171,103 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Provident Financial Services by 10.7% during 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 purchasing an additional 80,147 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.97% of the company's stock.

Provident Financial Services Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of NYSE:PFS opened at $21.95 on Thursday. Provident Financial Services, Inc has a 1 year low of $17.69 and a 1 year high of $25.49. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $23.26 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $22.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.86 billion, a PE ratio of 9.18 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03.

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The savings and loans company reported $0.60 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.56 by $0.04. Provident Financial Services had a return on equity of 11.00% and a net margin of 22.15%. The firm had revenue of $234.96 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $225.57 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.55 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Provident Financial Services, Inc will post 2.44 EPS for the current year.

Provident Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 14th were paid a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 14th. Provident Financial Services's payout ratio is currently 40.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on PFS. Piper Sandler restated an "overweight" rating and set a $29.00 price target (up from $26.00) on shares of Provident Financial Services in a report on Friday, July 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $28.00 price objective (up from $26.00) on shares of Provident Financial Services in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Provident Financial Services from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research report on Friday, October 9th. Raymond James Financial increased their target price on shares of Provident Financial Services from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. Finally, DA Davidson set a $26.00 target price on shares of Provident Financial Services in a research note on Friday, July 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $26.79.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP James Christy sold 3,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.36, for a total value of $70,080.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 43,083 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,006,418.88. This represents a 6.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Thomas Shara sold 40,266 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.06, for a total transaction of $928,533.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 382,911 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,829,927.66. The trade was a 9.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 79,166 shares of company stock valued at $1,856,284. 3.02% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Provident Financial Services

Provident Financial Services, Inc is the parent company of Provident Bank, a full-service community bank headquartered in New Jersey. The bank serves individuals, families, businesses, and municipal organizations through a network of banking offices and digital channels.

Provident Bank offers consumer and commercial deposit products, residential and commercial real estate loans, commercial and industrial lending, consumer credit, and cash-management services. It also provides wealth-management and fiduciary services, along with other financial solutions designed for small and middle-market businesses.

Provident Financial Services traces its banking operations to the late 19th century.

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