Provident Financial (NASDAQ:PROV) Shares Cross Above 200-Day Moving Average - Time to Sell?

Shares of Provident Financial Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PROV - Get Free Report) crossed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Friday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $15.18 and traded as high as $15.80. Provident Financial shares last traded at $15.63, with a volume of 24,121 shares trading hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Wall Street Zen assumed coverage on shares of Provident Financial in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. They set a "hold" rating for the company.

Provident Financial Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $104.54 million, a P/E ratio of 16.11 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a current ratio of 1.22. The firm's fifty day moving average is $15.34 and its two-hundred day moving average is $15.16.

Provident Financial (NASDAQ:PROV - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The financial services provider reported $0.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.24 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $10.12 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.86 million. Provident Financial had a net margin of 10.87% and a return on equity of 5.09%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Provident Financial Holdings, Inc. will post 0.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Provident Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 5th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 15th were paid a $0.14 dividend. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.58%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 15th. Provident Financial's payout ratio is currently 57.73%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Gwendolyn Wertz sold 1,940 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.40, for a total transaction of $29,876.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 25,337 shares in the company, valued at approximately $390,189.80. This represents a 7.11% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 11.41% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Provident Financial

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in shares of Provident Financial by 7.9% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 29,084 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $424,000 after buying an additional 2,120 shares in the last quarter. M3F Inc. raised its position in shares of Provident Financial by 0.5% during the 1st quarter. M3F Inc. now owns 438,215 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $6,394,000 after buying an additional 2,215 shares in the last quarter. Black Maple Capital Management LP raised its position in shares of Provident Financial by 8.9% during the 4th quarter. Black Maple Capital Management LP now owns 31,128 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $495,000 after buying an additional 2,557 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its position in shares of Provident Financial by 25.9% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 26,464 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $421,000 after buying an additional 5,445 shares in the last quarter. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its position in shares of Provident Financial by 7.4% during the 4th quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 334,789 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $5,326,000 after buying an additional 23,117 shares in the last quarter. 71.34% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Provident Financial Company Profile

Provident Financial Holdings, Inc operates as the holding company for Provident Savings Bank, F.S.B. that provides community banking services to consumers and small to mid-sized businesses in the Inland Empire region of Southern California. The company's deposit products include checking, savings, and money market accounts, as well as time deposits; and loan portfolio consists of single-family, multi-family, commercial real estate, construction, mortgage, commercial business, and consumer loans.