Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) Price Target Cut to $18.00 by Analysts at Royal Bank of Canada

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) had its price objective reduced by Royal Bank of Canada from $19.00 to $18.00 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday morning, Benzinga reports. Royal Bank of Canada currently has an outperform rating on the savings and loans company’s stock.

Several other equities analysts also recently weighed in on the company. TheStreet downgraded Provident Financial Services from a b- rating to a c+ rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 13th. StockNews.com upgraded Provident Financial Services from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 23rd. DA Davidson upgraded Provident Financial Services from a neutral rating to a buy rating and lifted their target price for the company from $15.00 to $20.00 in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on Provident Financial Services from $20.00 to $17.00 and set a market perform rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Provident Financial Services currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $18.75.

Provident Financial Services Stock Up 0.8 %

Provident Financial Services stock opened at $16.07 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $2.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.04 and a beta of 1.03. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $14.56 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $15.28. Provident Financial Services has a 12 month low of $13.07 and a 12 month high of $19.62. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25.

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

Provident Financial Services Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 29th were given a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 26th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.97%. Provident Financial Services’s payout ratio is 60.00%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Provident Financial Services

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in PFS. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Provident Financial Services in the fourth quarter valued at about $9,419,000. Mendon Capital Advisors Corp purchased a new position in shares of Provident Financial Services in the fourth quarter valued at about $5,873,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC lifted its position in shares of Provident Financial Services by 334.5% in the fourth quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 103,938 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $1,889,000 after acquiring an additional 80,018 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in shares of Provident Financial Services by 3.1% in the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,261,425 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $34,577,000 after acquiring an additional 68,856 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System lifted its position in shares of Provident Financial Services by 269.0% in the first quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 77,382 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $1,127,000 after acquiring an additional 56,410 shares in the last quarter. 71.97% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.