Renaissance Technologies LLC Takes $6.99 Million Position in Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS)

Renaissance Technologies LLC bought a new position in Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 487,074 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,990,000.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Signaturefd LLC increased its holdings in Provident Financial Services by 991.2% during the 2nd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,855 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 1,685 shares in the last quarter. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Provident Financial Services during the second quarter worth $29,000. TFO Wealth Partners LLC raised its position in Provident Financial Services by 17,508.3% in the 4th quarter. TFO Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,113 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 2,101 shares during the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Provident Financial Services by 43.0% during the 2nd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,050 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $58,000 after acquiring an additional 1,218 shares in the last quarter. Finally, EntryPoint Capital LLC purchased a new position in Provident Financial Services during the 1st quarter worth $76,000. Institutional investors own 71.97% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently commented on PFS. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Provident Financial Services from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded shares of Provident Financial Services from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $20.00 to $21.00 in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on Provident Financial Services from $18.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $20.67.

Insider Buying and Selling at Provident Financial Services

In other Provident Financial Services news, EVP Vito Giannola sold 5,499 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.09, for a total transaction of $99,476.91. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 88,656 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,603,787.04. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 4.29% of the company’s stock.

Provident Financial Services Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:PFS opened at $18.29 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $2.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.43 and a beta of 1.04. The company’s 50-day moving average is $18.19 and its 200 day moving average is $15.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03. Provident Financial Services, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $13.07 and a fifty-two week high of $19.59.

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The savings and loans company reported ($0.11) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.28 by ($0.39). Provident Financial Services had a net margin of 9.38% and a return on equity of 4.95%. The company had revenue of $141.51 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $148.60 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.45 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 42.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Provident Financial Services, Inc. will post 1.72 earnings per share for the current year.

Provident Financial Services Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 16th were given a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.25%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 16th. Provident Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio is currently 60.00%.

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.