Provident Financial Services, Inc (NYSE:PFS) Receives $23.90 Consensus Target Price from Brokerages

Shares of Provident Financial Services, Inc (NYSE:PFS) have received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the six analysts that are covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $23.90.

PFS has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $25.00 price target on shares of Provident Financial Services in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. DA Davidson assumed coverage on shares of Provident Financial Services in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $25.00 target price on the stock. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Provident Financial Services from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Thursday, February 26th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of Provident Financial Services from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 29th.

Provident Financial Services Stock Performance

Provident Financial Services stock opened at $21.27 on Tuesday. Provident Financial Services has a twelve month low of $14.34 and a twelve month high of $23.98. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90. The company has a market capitalization of $2.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.54 and a beta of 0.86. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $21.48 and its 200 day moving average is $20.13.

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The savings and loans company reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by $0.08. Provident Financial Services had a return on equity of 10.69% and a net margin of 21.06%.The business had revenue of $225.03 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $224.08 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.37 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Provident Financial Services will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Provident Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 13th were paid a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 13th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.5%. Provident Financial Services’s payout ratio is currently 43.05%.

Provident Financial Services declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Monday, January 26th that allows the company to repurchase $2.81 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the savings and loans company to buy up to 0.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Provident Financial Services

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Sit Investment Associates Inc. lifted its stake in Provident Financial Services by 10.8% during the 4th quarter. Sit Investment Associates Inc. now owns 55,450 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $1,095,000 after acquiring an additional 5,425 shares during the period. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV purchased a new position in shares of Provident Financial Services during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $216,000. EP Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Provident Financial Services during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $452,000. Voloridge Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Provident Financial Services by 28.5% in the fourth quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 402,140 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $7,942,000 after purchasing an additional 89,197 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in Provident Financial Services by 5.5% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 6,710,987 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $132,542,000 after purchasing an additional 351,889 shares during the period. 71.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Provident Financial Services Company Profile

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.