Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) Price Target Cut to $22.00 by Analysts at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) had its price target dropped by research analysts at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $23.00 to $22.00 in a research report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “outperform” rating on the savings and loans company’s stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods’ price target would suggest a potential upside of 35.05% from the stock’s current price.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on shares of Provident Financial Services from $24.00 to $23.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 30th. StockNews.com upgraded Provident Financial Services from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, February 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $24.25.

Provident Financial Services Stock Down 1.5 %

Shares of NYSE:PFS traded down $0.25 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $16.29. 142,754 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 840,527. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.01. Provident Financial Services has a twelve month low of $13.07 and a twelve month high of $22.24. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $16.71 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $18.60. The company has a market cap of $2.13 billion, a PE ratio of 15.52 and a beta of 0.84.

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The savings and loans company reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.47 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $208.76 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $206.86 million. Provident Financial Services had a return on equity of 5.60% and a net margin of 10.13%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Provident Financial Services will post 2.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Provident Financial Services

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Barclays PLC increased its stake in Provident Financial Services by 39.8% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 316,953 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $5,883,000 after buying an additional 90,238 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in Provident Financial Services by 23.2% in the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 980,654 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $18,505,000 after acquiring an additional 184,799 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Provident Financial Services by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,825,993 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $34,456,000 after purchasing an additional 33,201 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Provident Financial Services in the 4th quarter valued at $513,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. acquired a new position in Provident Financial Services during the fourth quarter worth $5,026,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.97% of the company’s stock.

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.