Avantax Advisory Services Inc. Has $228,000 Stake in Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS)

Avantax Advisory Services Inc. increased its stake in Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS) by 7.5% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 12,084 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock after purchasing an additional 839 shares during the period. Avantax Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings in Provident Financial Services were worth $228,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its stake in shares of Provident Financial Services by 29.6% in the fourth quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 39,301 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $742,000 after buying an additional 8,986 shares during the last quarter. Amundi boosted its holdings in Provident Financial Services by 196.3% during the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 68,057 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $1,266,000 after acquiring an additional 45,085 shares during the period. Inceptionr LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Provident Financial Services in the fourth quarter valued at about $354,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Provident Financial Services in the fourth quarter worth about $6,994,000. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Provident Financial Services during the 4th quarter worth about $513,000. Institutional investors own 71.97% of the company’s stock.

Provident Financial Services Price Performance

Shares of Provident Financial Services stock opened at $17.34 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $2.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.51 and a beta of 1.06. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $18.17 and its 200-day simple moving average is $18.99. Provident Financial Services, Inc. has a twelve month low of $13.07 and a twelve month high of $22.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.01.

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) last released its quarterly earnings data 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%. As a group, research analysts expect that Provident Financial Services, Inc. will post 2.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Provident Financial Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th were issued a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.54%. Provident Financial Services’s payout ratio is presently 91.43%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PFS has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. StockNews.com raised Provident Financial Services from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, February 15th. Hovde Group began coverage on shares of Provident Financial Services in a research report on Friday, December 13th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $25.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on shares of Provident Financial Services from $24.00 to $23.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $24.00.

Provident Financial Services 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.