Voloridge Investment Management LLC Sells 112,239 Shares of Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS)

Voloridge Investment Management LLC lessened its stake in shares of Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS - Free Report) by 17.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 538,256 shares of the savings and loans company's stock after selling 112,239 shares during the period. Voloridge Investment Management LLC owned approximately 0.41% of Provident Financial Services worth $10,157,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Aquatic Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Provident Financial Services during the fourth quarter valued at about $46,000. Federated Hermes Inc. bought a new position in Provident Financial Services in the fourth quarter worth approximately $55,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Provident Financial Services by 805.9% during the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 3,968 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $75,000 after acquiring an additional 3,530 shares in the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC bought a new stake in Provident Financial Services during the 4th quarter valued at $99,000. Finally, KBC Group NV boosted its position in Provident Financial Services by 40.7% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 6,387 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $121,000 after acquiring an additional 1,848 shares in the last quarter. 71.97% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on PFS. Wall Street Zen upgraded Provident Financial Services from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, February 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on Provident Financial Services from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on Provident Financial Services from $24.00 to $23.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $24.25.

Provident Financial Services Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:PFS traded down $0.10 during trading on Friday, reaching $16.70. 150,617 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 740,302. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $2.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.99 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a 50 day moving average of $16.51 and a 200-day moving average of $18.20.

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

Provident Financial Services Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.75%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. Provident Financial Services's payout ratio is 86.49%.

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.