Provident Financial (NASDAQ:PROV) Now Covered by StockNews.com

StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Provident Financial (NASDAQ:PROV) in a research report released on Wednesday. The firm issued a hold rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

Separately, Piper Sandler dropped their price target on Provident Financial from $17.00 to $16.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th.

Provident Financial Price Performance

PROV opened at $14.11 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $94.41 million, a P/E ratio of 15.51 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a 50-day moving average of $15.17 and a 200-day moving average of $15.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.91, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 1.25. Provident Financial has a 1-year low of $12.01 and a 1-year high of $16.70.

Provident Financial (NASDAQ:PROV) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The financial services provider reported $0.13 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.26 by ($0.13). Provident Financial had a net margin of 10.39% and a return on equity of 4.81%. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.31 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Provident Financial will post 0.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Provident Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 6th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 13th were given a dividend of $0.14 per share. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.97%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 13th. Provident Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 61.54%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Provident Financial

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Provident Financial by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 486,296 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $7,737,000 after purchasing an additional 1,342 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its stake in Provident Financial by 7.4% during the 4th quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 334,789 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $5,326,000 after buying an additional 23,117 shares during the last quarter. Fourthstone LLC grew its stake in Provident Financial by 30.5% during the 4th quarter. Fourthstone LLC now owns 90,080 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,433,000 after buying an additional 21,030 shares during the last quarter. Black Maple Capital Management LP increased its position in Provident Financial by 8.9% in the fourth quarter. Black Maple Capital Management LP now owns 31,128 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $495,000 after buying an additional 2,557 shares during the period. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in Provident Financial by 5.1% in the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 26,964 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $429,000 after buying an additional 1,307 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.34% of the company’s stock.

Provident Financial Company Profile

Provident Financial Holdings, Inc operates as the holding company for Provident Savings Bank, F.S.B. that provides community banking services to consumers and small to mid-sized businesses in the Inland Empire region of Southern California. The company's deposit products include checking, savings, and money market accounts, as well as time deposits; and loan portfolio consists of single-family, multi-family, commercial real estate, construction, mortgage, commercial business, and consumer loans.