Victory Capital Management Inc. Increases Stock Position in Provident Financial Services, Inc (NYSE:PFS)

Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Provident Financial Services, Inc (NYSE:PFS - Free Report) by 8.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 184,312 shares of the savings and loans company's stock after buying an additional 13,931 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. owned approximately 0.14% of Provident Financial Services worth $3,165,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Leigh Baldwin & CO. LLC purchased a new stake in Provident Financial Services during the fourth quarter valued at about $17,447,000. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Provident Financial Services in the 4th quarter valued at about $7,225,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Provident Financial Services in the 4th quarter valued at about $6,994,000. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Provident Financial Services by 37.7% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 878,493 shares of the savings and loans company's stock worth $16,577,000 after purchasing an additional 240,522 shares during the period. Finally, Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. increased its position in Provident Financial Services by 23.8% during the 4th quarter. Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. now owns 1,105,103 shares of the savings and loans company's stock worth $20,853,000 after purchasing an additional 212,395 shares in the last quarter. 71.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Raymond James Financial started coverage on shares of Provident Financial Services in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. They set a "strong-buy" rating and a $21.00 price target on the stock. Hovde Group raised their target price on shares of Provident Financial Services from $22.50 to $23.50 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, 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 research report on Monday, April 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Provident Financial Services presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $23.30.

Insider Buying and Selling at Provident Financial Services

In other news, Chairman Christopher P. Martin sold 55,668 shares of Provident Financial Services stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.07, for a total transaction of $950,252.76. Following the sale, the chairman directly owned 601,050 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,259,923.50. The trade was a 8.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 3.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Provident Financial Services Stock Up 3.9%

NYSE PFS opened at $19.07 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. Provident Financial Services, Inc has a fifty-two week low of $14.34 and a fifty-two week high of $22.24. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $17.46 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $17.45. The stock has a market cap of $2.49 billion, a PE ratio of 10.77 and a beta of 0.86.

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The savings and loans company reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.50 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $214.17 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $213.39 million. Provident Financial Services had a net margin of 16.97% and a return on equity of 8.80%. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted ($0.11) earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Provident Financial Services, Inc will post 2.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Provident Financial Services Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be given a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.04%. Provident Financial Services's payout ratio is currently 54.24%.

Provident Financial Services Company 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.

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