Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS) Shares Bought by JPMorgan Chase & Co.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS - Free Report) by 23.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 980,654 shares of the savings and loans company's stock after acquiring an additional 184,799 shares during the quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned approximately 0.75% of Provident Financial Services worth $18,505,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of Provident Financial Services by 120.6% during 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 purchasing an additional 820 shares in the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC bought a new position in shares of Provident Financial Services in the fourth quarter worth approximately $99,000. KBC Group NV raised its stake in shares of Provident Financial Services by 40.7% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 6,387 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $121,000 after acquiring an additional 1,848 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its position in Provident Financial Services by 141.1% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 7,533 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $142,000 after purchasing an additional 4,408 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allworth Financial LP lifted its stake in Provident Financial Services by 35,936.4% in the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 7,928 shares of the savings and loans company's stock worth $151,000 after acquiring an additional 7,906 shares during the period. 71.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on PFS. Royal Bank of Canada decreased 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 research note on Thursday, January 30th. StockNews.com raised 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 issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $24.00.

Provident Financial Services Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE PFS traded up $0.04 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $15.28. The company had a trading volume of 175,084 shares, compared to its average volume of 844,727. The business's 50-day moving average is $17.11 and its 200-day moving average is $18.68. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95. Provident Financial Services, Inc. has a 52 week low of $13.07 and a 52 week high of $22.24. The stock has a market cap of $1.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.61 and a beta of 0.84.

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The savings and loans company reported $0.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.50 by ($0.13). Provident Financial Services had a net margin of 10.13% and a return on equity of 5.60%. Equities analysts expect that Provident Financial Services, Inc. will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Provident Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th were issued a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.28%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. Provident Financial Services's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 91.43%.

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.