Peoples Financial Services (NASDAQ:PFIS) Downgraded by StockNews.com to Sell

Peoples Financial Services (NASDAQ:PFIS) was downgraded by StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday.

Peoples Financial Services Stock Up 2.5 %

PFIS opened at $49.32 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $348.05 million, a PE ratio of 15.13 and a beta of 0.51. The business has a 50-day moving average of $46.35 and a 200-day moving average of $42.19. Peoples Financial Services has a fifty-two week low of $36.26 and a fifty-two week high of $51.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.92.

Peoples Financial Services (NASDAQ:PFIS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The financial services provider reported $0.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.52 by $0.07. Peoples Financial Services had a net margin of 10.07% and a return on equity of 5.93%. The business had revenue of $41.92 million during the quarter. Equities research analysts forecast that Peoples Financial Services will post 3.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Richard S. Lochen, Jr. bought 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $43.90 per share, with a total value of $43,900.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 15,555 shares in the company, valued at $682,864.50. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In the last three months, insiders bought 1,604 shares of company stock valued at $73,008. Company insiders own 4.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Peoples Financial Services

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of PFIS. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its stake in Peoples Financial Services by 87.7% during the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 3,400 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $147,000 after purchasing an additional 1,589 shares during the last quarter. Trexquant Investment LP acquired a new position in shares of Peoples Financial Services during the fourth quarter valued at about $281,000. Quadrature Capital Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Peoples Financial Services in the fourth quarter valued at about $355,000. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC grew its position in Peoples Financial Services by 2.6% during the second quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 8,749 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $398,000 after buying an additional 220 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers increased its stake in Peoples Financial Services by 14.5% during the second quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 12,450 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $567,000 after acquiring an additional 1,576 shares during the period. 31.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Peoples Financial Services

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.