Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) Stock Rating Upgraded by StockNews.com

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) was upgraded by equities researchers at StockNews.com from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday.

Several other equities analysts also recently commented on PFS. Hovde Group assumed coverage on Provident Financial Services in a research report on Friday, December 13th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $25.00 price objective on the stock. DA Davidson boosted their price target on shares of Provident Financial Services from $24.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $23.50.

Provident Financial Services Stock Performance

Shares of PFS stock traded down $0.84 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $18.35. 1,464,194 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 595,866. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $19.64 and a 200 day moving average price of $19.02. The company has a market cap of $2.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.64 and a beta of 1.08. Provident Financial Services 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 1.02, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03.

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The savings and loans company reported $0.37 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.50 by ($0.13). Provident Financial Services had a net margin of 9.55% and a return on equity of 5.21%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Provident Financial Services will post 1.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Provident Financial Services

In other news, EVP James A. Christy sold 3,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.88, for a total transaction of $73,080.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 34,254 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $715,223.52. This represents a 9.27 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 4.29% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Provident Financial Services

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in Provident Financial Services by 13,182.2% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,854,596 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $34,421,000 after purchasing an additional 1,840,633 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its stake in Provident Financial Services by 10.2% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,683,467 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $142,605,000 after buying an additional 713,688 shares in the last quarter. Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. lifted its stake in Provident Financial Services by 87.3% in the 3rd quarter. Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. now owns 892,708 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $16,569,000 after buying an additional 416,020 shares in the last quarter. Chartwell Investment Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Provident Financial Services in the 3rd quarter worth about $5,564,000. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake 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 buying an additional 283,879 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.97% of the company’s stock.

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.