Susquehanna International Group LLP Has $448,000 Stock Holdings in Provident Financial Services, Inc $PFS

Key Points

• Susquehanna International Group cut its Provident Financial Services position by 78.8% in the second quarter, leaving it with 18,954 shares valued at approximately $448,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 71.97% of PFS.
• Analysts remain broadly positive, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $26.79; several firms recently raised their targets to between $27 and $29.
• Provident exceeded quarterly earnings expectations, reporting $0.60 EPS versus the $0.56 consensus and $234.96 million in revenue. The company also paid a $0.24 quarterly dividend, equal to a 4.1% annualized yield.

Susquehanna International Group LLP trimmed its position in Provident Financial Services, Inc (NYSE:PFS - Free Report) by 78.8% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 18,954 shares of the savings and loans company's stock after selling 70,536 shares during the quarter. Susquehanna International Group LLP's holdings in Provident Financial Services were worth $448,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in PFS. Bank of America Corp DE grew its position in Provident Financial Services by 23.4% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 624,648 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $13,218,000 after acquiring an additional 118,432 shares during the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its stake in Provident Financial Services by 82.0% during the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 341,162 shares of the savings and loans company's stock worth $7,219,000 after acquiring an additional 153,698 shares in the last quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Provident Financial Services in the fourth quarter worth about $4,209,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in shares of Provident Financial Services in the second quarter worth about $36,916,000. Finally, Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Provident Financial Services in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $2,868,000. 71.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PFS has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Provident Financial Services in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $28.00 target price (up from $26.00) on shares of Provident Financial Services in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Piper Sandler reiterated 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. Hovde Group raised their price objective on Provident Financial Services from $26.50 to $28.50 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Raymond James Financial boosted their price objective on Provident Financial Services from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $26.79.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Vito Giannola sold 20,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.36, for a total value of $487,200.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 56,424 shares in the company, valued at $1,374,488.64. This represents a 26.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 3.02% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Provident Financial Services Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:PFS opened at $23.37 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03. Provident Financial Services, Inc has a 52 week low of $17.69 and a 52 week high of $25.49. The firm has a market cap of $3.05 billion, a PE ratio of 9.74 and a beta of 0.78. The firm's fifty day moving average is $23.98 and its 200-day moving average is $22.69.

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The savings and loans company reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.56 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $234.96 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $225.57 million. Provident Financial Services had a return on equity of 11.00% and a net margin of 22.15%.During the same period last year, the company earned $0.55 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Provident Financial Services, Inc will post 2.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Provident Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 28th. Investors of record on Friday, August 14th were paid a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 14th. Provident Financial Services's payout ratio is currently 40.00%.

Provident Financial Services Profile

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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