Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC Purchases Shares of 5,248 Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS)

Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 5,248 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock, valued at approximately $99,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in Provident Financial Services by 10.2% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,683,467 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $142,605,000 after acquiring an additional 713,688 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Provident Financial Services by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,947,394 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $54,715,000 after buying an additional 53,943 shares during the last quarter. PL Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Provident Financial Services by 1,787.0% in the 4th quarter. PL Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,533,618 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $47,809,000 after buying an additional 2,399,351 shares during the last quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP boosted its holdings in shares of Provident Financial Services by 11.7% in the 3rd quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP now owns 1,888,623 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $35,053,000 after buying an additional 198,468 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Provident Financial Services by 13,182.2% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,854,596 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $34,421,000 after buying an additional 1,840,633 shares during the last quarter. 71.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Provident Financial Services Price Performance

NYSE PFS opened at $17.08 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $2.23 billion, a PE ratio of 16.26 and a beta of 1.06. Provident Financial Services, Inc. has a 52 week low of $13.07 and a 52 week high of $22.24. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $18.37 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $19.07.

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The savings and loans company reported $0.37 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.50 by ($0.13). Provident Financial Services had a net margin of 10.13% and a return on equity of 5.60%. Research analysts predict that Provident Financial Services, Inc. will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Provident Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th were given a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.62%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. Provident Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 91.43%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on PFS. Hovde Group began coverage on shares of Provident Financial Services in a report on Friday, December 13th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $25.00 price target on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Provident Financial Services from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, February 15th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of Provident Financial Services from $24.00 to $23.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $24.00.

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.