Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS) Short Interest Down 17.9% in October

Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS) was the target of a significant decrease in short interest in the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 2,850,000 shares, a decrease of 17.9% from the October 15th total of 3,470,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 696,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.1 days.

Provident Financial Services Trading Up 1.0 %

PFS traded up $0.22 during trading on Friday, hitting $21.40. 637,637 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 622,118. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $19.06 and a 200 day simple moving average of $17.12. The firm has a market cap of $2.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.58 and a beta of 1.03. Provident Financial Services has a 1 year low of $13.07 and a 1 year high of $22.23.

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The savings and loans company reported $0.36 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.47 by ($0.11). Provident Financial Services had a net margin of 9.55% and a return on equity of 5.21%. The firm had revenue of $349.38 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $211.25 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.38 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Provident Financial Services will post 1.84 EPS for the current year.

Provident Financial Services Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.49%. Provident Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio is presently 92.31%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PFS has been the subject of several analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Provident Financial Services from $18.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded Provident Financial Services from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $20.00 to $21.00 in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. StockNews.com cut Provident Financial Services from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Finally, DA Davidson raised their price target on Provident Financial Services from $24.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $23.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Provident Financial Services

In related news, EVP Vito Giannola sold 5,499 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.09, for a total transaction of $99,476.91. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 88,656 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,603,787.04. This represents a 5.84 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 4.29% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Provident Financial Services

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Provident Financial Services by 120.6% in the 3rd quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,500 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 820 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC raised its holdings in Provident Financial Services by 991.2% in the second 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 purchased a new stake in shares of Provident Financial Services during the second quarter valued at about $29,000. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Provident Financial Services by 43.0% during the second quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,050 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $58,000 after buying an additional 1,218 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EntryPoint Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Provident Financial Services in the 1st quarter valued at about $76,000. 71.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.