State of Tennessee Department of Treasury Sells 15,913 Shares of Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS)

State of Tennessee Department of Treasury lowered its position in Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS - Free Report) by 20.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 61,043 shares of the savings and loans company's stock after selling 15,913 shares during the period. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury's holdings in Provident Financial Services were worth $1,152,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of PFS. PL Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Provident Financial Services by 1,787.0% during the 4th quarter. PL Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,533,618 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $47,809,000 after purchasing an additional 2,399,351 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Provident Financial Services in the fourth quarter valued at about $7,225,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Provident Financial Services during the 4th quarter worth about $6,994,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in Provident Financial Services by 55.4% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 795,855 shares of the savings and loans company's stock worth $14,771,000 after acquiring an additional 283,879 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. acquired a new stake in Provident Financial Services in the 4th quarter valued at about $5,026,000. 71.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Provident Financial Services from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, February 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on Provident Financial Services from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on Provident Financial Services from $24.00 to $23.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $24.25.

Provident Financial Services Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of Provident Financial Services stock traded up $0.02 during trading on Monday, reaching $17.11. 132,097 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 841,485. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.29 and a beta of 0.84. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $16.56 and a 200-day moving average price of $18.50. Provident Financial Services, Inc. has a twelve month low of $13.07 and a twelve month high of $22.24.

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The savings and loans company reported $0.50 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 business had revenue of $208.76 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $206.86 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.43 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 82.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Provident Financial Services, Inc. will post 2.14 EPS for the current fiscal 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 given a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.61%. Provident Financial Services's dividend payout ratio is currently 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.