Berkshire Asset Management LLC PA Acquires 8,673 Shares of Peoples Financial Services Corp. (NASDAQ:PFIS)

Berkshire Asset Management LLC PA lifted its stake in shares of Peoples Financial Services Corp. (NASDAQ:PFIS) by 67.8% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 21,464 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 8,673 shares during the quarter. Berkshire Asset Management LLC PA’s holdings in Peoples Financial Services were worth $1,091,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PFIS. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Peoples Financial Services during the fourth quarter worth approximately $938,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Peoples Financial Services by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 26,345 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,348,000 after purchasing an additional 704 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in Peoples Financial Services by 20.6% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 52,100 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,666,000 after purchasing an additional 8,911 shares during the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its position in Peoples Financial Services by 4.1% during the fourth quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 13,182 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $675,000 after buying an additional 518 shares during the period. Finally, Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Peoples Financial Services by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 38,857 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,989,000 after buying an additional 225 shares during the last quarter. 31.67% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Peoples Financial Services

In related news, Director Richard S. Lochen, Jr. bought 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $47.12 per share, with a total value of $47,120.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 17,129 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $807,118.48. The trade was a 6.20 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 4.10% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on PFIS shares. Stephens raised Peoples Financial Services from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Hovde Group boosted their price objective on Peoples Financial Services from $48.00 to $53.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th.

Peoples Financial Services Stock Performance

Peoples Financial Services stock opened at $46.87 on Friday. Peoples Financial Services Corp. has a 1-year low of $36.26 and a 1-year high of $59.70. The firm has a market cap of $468.47 million, a P/E ratio of 41.48 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $50.21 and a 200-day moving average of $49.73.

Peoples Financial Services (NASDAQ:PFIS) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The financial services provider reported $0.99 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.16 by ($0.17). Peoples Financial Services had a return on equity of 8.97% and a net margin of 3.70%. Sell-side analysts expect that Peoples Financial Services Corp. will post 5.92 EPS for the current year.

Peoples Financial Services Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be issued a dividend of $0.6175 per share. This represents a $2.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.27%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. Peoples Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 218.58%.

Peoples Financial Services Profile

Peoples Financial Services Corp. operates as the bank holding company for Peoples Security Bank and Trust Company that provides various commercial and retail banking services. The company accepts money market, negotiable order of withdrawal, savings, individual retirement, demand deposit, and certificates of deposit accounts.