Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Increases Stake in Provident Financial Services, Inc (NYSE:PFS)

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System boosted its stake in shares of Provident Financial Services, Inc (NYSE:PFS) by 0.4% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 24,700 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System’s holdings in Provident Financial Services were worth $627,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. First Manhattan Co. boosted its stake in Provident Financial Services by 29.3% in the first quarter. First Manhattan Co. now owns 4,850 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $102,000 after buying an additional 1,100 shares during the last quarter. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. purchased a new stake in Provident Financial Services during the first quarter valued at $136,000. State of Alaska Department of Revenue boosted its stake in Provident Financial Services by 2.9% in the first quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 6,670 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $172,000 after buying an additional 190 shares during the last quarter. OppenheimerFunds Inc. purchased a new stake in Provident Financial Services during the first quarter valued at $293,000. Finally, Mason Street Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Provident Financial Services by 7.7% in the first quarter. Mason Street Advisors LLC now owns 14,140 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $366,000 after buying an additional 1,007 shares during the last quarter. 61.57% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Provident Financial Services, Inc (NYSE:PFS) opened at 24.54 on Friday. Provident Financial Services, Inc has a one year low of $20.53 and a one year high of $28.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.92 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a 50-day moving average of $25.62 and a 200-day moving average of $25.44.

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) last announced its earnings results on Friday, July 28th. The savings and loans company reported $0.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the Thomson Reuters’ consensus estimate of $0.36 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $83.87 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $81.24 million. Provident Financial Services had a net margin of 25.39% and a return on equity of 7.40%. Provident Financial Services’s revenue was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.34 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Provident Financial Services, Inc will post $1.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 15th will be paid a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.26%. This is an increase from Provident Financial Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.19. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 11th. Provident Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 54.79%.

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A number of analysts have recently commented on PFS shares. Sandler O’Neill raised Provident Financial Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $30.00 price target on shares of Provident Financial Services in a research report on Friday, July 7th. ValuEngine raised Provident Financial Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 8th. Zacks Investment Research raised Provident Financial Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $30.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 2nd. Finally, Piper Jaffray Companies reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $25.50 price target on shares of Provident Financial Services in a research report on Friday, July 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. The company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $26.90.

Provident Financial Services Company Profile

Provident Financial Services Inc is a holding company for The Provident Bank (the Bank). The Bank is a New Jersey-chartered capital stock savings bank. As a community and customer-oriented institution, the Bank provides personal service and customer convenience in serving the financial needs of the individuals, families and businesses residing in its primary markets areas.