Peoples Financial Services (NASDAQ:PFIS) Stock Price Down 6% Following Weak Earnings

Peoples Financial Services Corp. (NASDAQ:PFIS) shares traded down 6% during trading on Friday following a weaker than expected earnings announcement. The stock traded as low as $50.01 and last traded at $50.46. 4,514 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 83% from the average session volume of 26,853 shares. The stock had previously closed at $53.70.

The financial services provider reported $0.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.16 by ($0.17). Peoples Financial Services had a return on equity of 7.73% and a net margin of 3.00%.

Peoples Financial Services Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be issued a dividend of $0.6175 per share. This represents a $2.47 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.92%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. Peoples Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio is currently 239.81%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Hovde Group raised their price objective on shares of Peoples Financial Services from $48.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Peoples Financial Services from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Stephens raised shares of Peoples Financial Services from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Peoples Financial Services

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new position in Peoples Financial Services during the 3rd quarter valued at about $149,000. Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Peoples Financial Services by 413.0% during the 3rd quarter. Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 38,632 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,811,000 after buying an additional 31,102 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC raised its stake in shares of Peoples Financial Services by 58.6% during the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 45,345 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,126,000 after buying an additional 16,753 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Peoples Financial Services by 45.0% during the third quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 50,884 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,385,000 after purchasing an additional 15,802 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Peoples Financial Services by 5.0% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 25,641 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,202,000 after buying an additional 1,225 shares in the last quarter. 31.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Peoples Financial Services Trading Down 6.4 %

The stock has a market cap of $502.04 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 49.11 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 0.93. The company has a 50 day moving average of $51.96 and a 200-day moving average of $49.17.

Peoples Financial Services Company Profile

Peoples Financial Services Corp. operates as the bank holding company for Peoples Security Bank and Trust Company that provides various commercial and retail banking services. The company accepts money market, negotiable order of withdrawal, savings, individual retirement, demand deposit, and certificates of deposit accounts.