Foundry Partners LLC Raises Stake in Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS)

Foundry Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS) by 4.9% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 191,018 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock after purchasing an additional 8,921 shares during the quarter. Foundry Partners LLC owned approximately 0.15% of Provident Financial Services worth $3,545,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Signaturefd LLC boosted its stake in shares of Provident Financial Services by 991.2% during the second quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,855 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 1,685 shares during the period. Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Provident Financial Services during the second quarter valued at $29,000. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake 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 purchasing an additional 1,218 shares during the period. EntryPoint Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Provident Financial Services in the first quarter worth about $76,000. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Provident Financial Services by 1,779.7% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 7,876 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $146,000 after acquiring an additional 7,457 shares during the period. 71.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Provident Financial Services Stock Performance

Shares of Provident Financial Services stock opened at $20.85 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $2.72 billion, a PE ratio of 20.05 and a beta of 1.03. 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 company has a 50-day simple moving average of $19.24 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $17.24. Provident Financial Services, Inc. has a one year low of $13.07 and a one year high of $22.23.

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

Provident Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.60%. Provident Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio is presently 92.31%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on PFS shares. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Provident Financial Services from $18.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. DA Davidson upped their price objective on shares of Provident Financial Services from $24.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Provident Financial Services from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised shares of Provident Financial Services from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $20.00 to $21.00 in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $23.00.

Provident Financial Services 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.