Chartwell Investment Partners LLC Makes New $5.56 Million Investment in Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS)

Chartwell Investment Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS - Free Report) in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 299,761 shares of the savings and loans company's stock, valued at approximately $5,564,000. Chartwell Investment Partners LLC owned approximately 0.23% of Provident Financial Services at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its holdings in shares of Provident Financial Services by 73.2% during the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 36,674 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $534,000 after acquiring an additional 15,498 shares in the last quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp boosted its stake in shares of Provident Financial Services by 1.4% during the first quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp now owns 66,113 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $963,000 after purchasing an additional 885 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of Provident Financial Services during the first quarter worth about $544,000. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund increased its stake in shares of Provident Financial Services by 3.9% in the first quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 43,930 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $640,000 after buying an additional 1,637 shares during the period. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Provident Financial Services by 7.4% in the 1st quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 14,856 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $216,000 after buying an additional 1,020 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.97% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Vito Giannola sold 5,499 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.09, for a total value of $99,476.91. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 88,656 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,603,787.04. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 4.29% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PFS has been the subject of several recent research reports. StockNews.com cut shares of Provident Financial Services from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised Provident Financial Services from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $20.00 to $21.00 in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Provident Financial Services from $18.00 to $21.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $20.67.

Provident Financial Services Trading Down 1.9 %

Provident Financial Services stock traded down $0.42 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $21.44. 614,728 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 888,872. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.80 billion, a PE ratio of 20.90 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $18.84 and its 200 day simple moving average is $16.96. Provident Financial Services, Inc. has a twelve month low of $13.07 and a twelve month high of $22.23.

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The savings and loans company reported $0.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.47 by ($0.11). The business had revenue of $349.38 million for 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 previous year, the company posted $0.38 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Provident Financial Services, Inc. will post 1.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Provident Financial Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.48%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. Provident Financial Services's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 92.31%.

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.