Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Sells 1,471 Shares of Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS)

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund lowered its stake in shares of Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS) by 2.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 71,389 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock after selling 1,471 shares during the quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund owned 0.05% of Provident Financial Services worth $1,347,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake in Provident Financial Services by 120.6% in 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 during the period. KBC Group NV grew its stake in Provident Financial Services by 40.7% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 6,387 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $121,000 after purchasing an additional 1,848 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Provident Financial Services by 1,779.7% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 7,876 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $146,000 after purchasing an additional 7,457 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP grew its stake in Provident Financial Services by 35,936.4% in the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 7,928 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $151,000 after purchasing an additional 7,906 shares during the period. Finally, Haverford Trust Co bought a new position in Provident Financial Services in the 3rd quarter valued at $187,000. Institutional investors own 71.97% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP James A. Christy sold 3,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.88, for a total transaction of $73,080.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 34,254 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $715,223.52. This represents a 9.27 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 4.44% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Hovde Group assumed coverage on Provident Financial Services in a research note on Friday, December 13th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $25.00 price objective for the company. DA Davidson upped their price objective on Provident Financial Services from $24.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on 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. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Provident Financial Services from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $24.00.

Provident Financial Services Stock Up 2.0 %

PFS stock opened at $18.27 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.01. The company has a market capitalization of $2.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.40 and a beta of 1.07. Provident Financial Services, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $13.07 and a fifty-two week high of $22.24. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $18.77 and a 200-day moving average of $19.14.

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The savings and loans company reported $0.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.50 by ($0.13). Provident Financial Services had a return on equity of 5.60% and a net margin of 10.13%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Provident Financial Services, Inc. will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Provident Financial Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.25%. Provident Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 91.43%.

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.