Leigh Baldwin & CO. LLC Makes New $17.45 Million Investment in Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS)

Leigh Baldwin & CO. LLC acquired a new stake in Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 924,598 shares of the savings and loans company's stock, valued at approximately $17,447,000. Leigh Baldwin & CO. LLC owned approximately 0.71% of Provident Financial Services as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Barclays PLC grew its position in Provident Financial Services by 39.8% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 316,953 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $5,883,000 after acquiring an additional 90,238 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in shares of Provident Financial Services by 23.2% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 980,654 shares of the savings and loans company's stock worth $18,505,000 after buying an additional 184,799 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Provident Financial Services by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,825,993 shares of the savings and loans company's stock worth $34,456,000 after buying an additional 33,201 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Provident Financial Services during the fourth quarter worth approximately $513,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. acquired a new stake in shares of Provident Financial Services during the fourth quarter worth approximately $5,026,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.97% of the company's stock.

Provident Financial Services Stock Performance

PFS traded down $0.36 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $17.50. 583,610 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 769,578. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $16.54 and a 200-day simple moving average of $18.40. Provident Financial Services, Inc. has a 12 month low of $13.07 and a 12 month high of $22.24. The stock has a market cap of $2.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.66 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 1.01.

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The savings and loans company reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.47 by $0.03. Provident Financial Services had a return on equity of 5.60% and a net margin of 10.13%. The firm had revenue of $208.76 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $206.86 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.43 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 82.4% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Provident Financial Services, Inc. will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Provident Financial Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. Provident Financial Services's dividend payout ratio is currently 86.49%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Provident Financial Services from $24.00 to $23.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. StockNews.com raised shares of Provident Financial Services from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, February 15th. 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 research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Provident Financial Services currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $24.25.

Provident Financial Services 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.