Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. Purchases 3,557 Shares of Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS)

Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. increased its position in Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS) by 23.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 18,643 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,557 shares during the period. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Provident Financial Services were worth $272,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Provident Financial Services during the fourth quarter valued at about $9,419,000. Mendon Capital Advisors Corp bought a new stake in Provident Financial Services during the fourth quarter valued at about $5,873,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its holdings in Provident Financial Services by 334.5% during the fourth quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 103,938 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $1,889,000 after purchasing an additional 80,018 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in Provident Financial Services by 3.1% during the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,261,425 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $34,577,000 after purchasing an additional 68,856 shares during the period. Finally, Rafferty Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Provident Financial Services by 67.0% during the fourth quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC now owns 129,366 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $2,332,000 after purchasing an additional 51,923 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 71.97% of the company’s stock.

Provident Financial Services Stock Performance

NYSE PFS opened at $14.54 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $1.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.09 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $14.57 and a 200-day moving average price of $15.41. Provident Financial Services, Inc. has a twelve month low of $13.07 and a twelve month high of $19.62.

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) last posted its earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The savings and loans company reported $0.43 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $114.48 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $114.50 million. Provident Financial Services had a return on equity of 7.31% and a net margin of 16.78%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 12.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.54 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Provident Financial Services, Inc. will post 1.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Provident Financial Services Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 31st. Investors of record on Monday, April 29th were given a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 26th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.60%. Provident Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio is currently 60.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PFS has been the subject of several recent research reports. StockNews.com raised Provident Financial Services from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on Provident Financial Services from $20.00 to $17.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. TheStreet lowered Provident Financial Services from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 13th. DA Davidson raised Provident Financial Services from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $15.00 to $20.00 in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on Provident Financial Services from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $19.00.

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.