Affinity Investment Advisors LLC Sells 10,650 Shares of Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS)

Affinity Investment Advisors LLC lowered its stake in Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS) by 36.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 18,750 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock after selling 10,650 shares during the quarter. Affinity Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Provident Financial Services were worth $338,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of PFS. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in Provident Financial Services by 1,728.7% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 7,333 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $132,000 after buying an additional 6,932 shares in the last quarter. Oak Thistle LLC purchased a new position in shares of Provident Financial Services during the fourth quarter worth about $202,000. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC increased its position in shares of Provident Financial Services by 8.9% in the third quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 14,434 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $221,000 after purchasing an additional 1,184 shares during the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its stake in Provident Financial Services by 41.5% in the third quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 15,016 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $230,000 after purchasing an additional 4,403 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Everence Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in Provident Financial Services during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $253,000. 71.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Provident Financial Services Stock Down 0.4 %

Provident Financial Services stock traded down $0.07 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $15.57. The stock had a trading volume of 708,981 shares, compared to its average volume of 904,203. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $14.87 and its 200-day moving average price is $15.81. Provident Financial Services, Inc. has a 12-month low of $13.21 and a 12-month high of $19.62. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.78 and a beta of 1.04.

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The savings and loans company reported $0.43 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.40 by $0.03. Provident Financial Services had a return on equity of 7.31% and a net margin of 16.78%. The firm had revenue of $114.48 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $114.50 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.54 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 12.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Provident Financial Services, Inc. will post 1.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Provident Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 31st. Investors of record on Monday, April 29th will be issued a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.17%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 26th. Provident Financial Services’s payout ratio is currently 60.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on Provident Financial Services from $20.00 to $17.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Provident Financial Services from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Provident Financial Services from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 23rd. TheStreet lowered shares of Provident Financial Services from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. Finally, DA Davidson raised shares of Provident Financial Services from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $15.00 to $20.00 in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $19.00.

About Provident Financial Services

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.