UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC Acquires 43,849 Shares of Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS)

UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its holdings in shares of Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS - Free Report) by 22.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 241,627 shares of the savings and loans company's stock after acquiring an additional 43,849 shares during the quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC owned about 0.19% of Provident Financial Services worth $4,560,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Provident Financial Services by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,605,199 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $275,600,000 after purchasing an additional 51,253 shares during the period. PL Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Provident Financial Services by 1,787.0% in the fourth quarter. PL Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,533,618 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $47,809,000 after buying an additional 2,399,351 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in Provident Financial Services by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,456,401 shares of the savings and loans company's stock worth $46,352,000 after acquiring an additional 81,617 shares during the period. Systematic Financial Management LP raised its holdings in Provident Financial Services by 4.6% in the 4th quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP now owns 1,976,235 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $37,292,000 after acquiring an additional 87,612 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of 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 valued at $34,456,000 after acquiring an additional 33,201 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 71.97% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PFS has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target 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. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Provident Financial Services from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, February 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Provident Financial Services has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $24.25.

Provident Financial Services Price Performance

Shares of PFS stock traded up $0.09 on Friday, hitting $16.59. 229,317 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 727,625. Provident Financial Services, Inc. has a 12 month low of $13.07 and a 12 month high of $22.24. 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 company has a 50 day moving average of $16.44 and a 200 day moving average of $18.03. The stock has a market cap of $2.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.80 and a beta of 0.86.

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. The company had revenue of $208.76 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $206.86 million. Provident Financial Services had a net margin of 10.13% and a return on equity of 5.60%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 82.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.43 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Provident Financial Services, Inc. will post 2.14 EPS for the current year.

Provident Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 16th were issued a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 16th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.79%. Provident Financial Services's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.