Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) Reaches New 52-Week High - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• Provident Financial Services shares reached a new 52-week high of $25.49 and last traded at $25.24, giving the company a market capitalization of approximately $3.29 billion.
• Analyst sentiment is positive, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $26.79. Recent targets range from $24 to $28.50.
• The company exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $0.60 in earnings per share versus the $0.56 consensus and revenue of $234.96 million versus $225.57 million expected. It also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.24, representing a 3.8% yield.

Provident Financial Services, Inc (NYSE:PFS - Get Free Report) shares hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $25.49 and last traded at $25.24, with a volume of 1257554 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $25.18.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PFS has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Hovde Group boosted their price objective on shares of Provident Financial Services from $26.50 to $28.50 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Stephens initiated coverage on shares of Provident Financial Services in a report on Monday, June 8th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $24.00 target price for the company. Raymond James Financial lifted their price target on shares of Provident Financial Services from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Provident Financial Services in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, DA Davidson set a $26.00 price target on Provident Financial Services in a report on Friday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $26.79.

Provident Financial Services Stock Up 0.2%

The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $23.39 and a 200-day moving average price of $22.38. The firm has a market cap of $3.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.52 and a beta of 0.78.

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The savings and loans company reported $0.60 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.56 by $0.04. Provident Financial Services had a net margin of 22.15% and a return on equity of 11.00%. The firm had revenue of $234.96 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $225.57 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.55 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Provident Financial Services, Inc will post 2.41 EPS for the current year.

Provident Financial Services Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 14th will be issued a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 14th. Provident Financial Services's dividend payout ratio is 40.00%.

Insider Activity at Provident Financial Services

In other news, CEO George Lista sold 2,556 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.40, for a total value of $57,254.40. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 109,262 shares in the company, valued at $2,447,468.80. This represents a 2.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 3.02% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Provident Financial Services

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of PFS. Royal Bank of Canada increased its position in Provident Financial Services by 23.9% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 44,106 shares of the savings and loans company's stock worth $758,000 after buying an additional 8,507 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Provident Financial Services by 4.6% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 74,926 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $1,286,000 after acquiring an additional 3,277 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its position in shares of Provident Financial Services by 6.3% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 256,739 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $4,408,000 after acquiring an additional 15,112 shares in the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Provident Financial Services by 247.5% during the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 312,478 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $5,365,000 after acquiring an additional 222,549 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Provident Financial Services by 45.6% during the first quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 73,261 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $1,258,000 after acquiring an additional 22,961 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.97% of the company's stock.

About Provident Financial Services

Provident Financial Services, Inc is the bank holding company for Provident Bank, a regional commercial bank headquartered in Jersey City, New Jersey. The company operates a network of full-service branches across New Jersey, the New York metropolitan area and eastern Pennsylvania, offering a range of personal and business banking solutions.

Its core products and services include checking and savings accounts, consumer and residential mortgage loans, commercial real estate financing and small-business lending.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

Continue following MarketBeat

Add MarketBeat as your preferred source on Google to see our latest stories in your feed.

Add As Preferred Source