Principal Financial Group Inc. Has $17.50 Million Holdings in Provident Financial Services, Inc $PFS

Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in Provident Financial Services, Inc (NYSE:PFS) by 10.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 827,266 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock after acquiring an additional 80,147 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Provident Financial Services were worth $17,505,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky increased its holdings in shares of Provident Financial Services by 5.7% in the first quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 32,555 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $689,000 after purchasing an additional 1,750 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its position in Provident Financial Services by 2,998.8% in the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 29,284 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $620,000 after purchasing an additional 28,339 shares during the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC lifted its holdings in Provident Financial Services by 104.5% during the 1st quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 281,106 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $5,951,000 after buying an additional 143,638 shares in the last quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Provident Financial Services during the 1st quarter worth $249,000. Finally, New York State Teachers Retirement System boosted its position in Provident Financial Services by 42.0% in the 1st quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 47,464 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $1,004,000 after buying an additional 14,028 shares during the last quarter. 71.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Provident Financial Services Stock Performance

Shares of PFS stock opened at $24.00 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $3.13 billion, a PE ratio of 10.21 and a beta of 0.78. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $22.96 and a 200-day moving average of $22.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 1.04. Provident Financial Services, Inc has a one year low of $17.61 and a one year high of $24.56.

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The savings and loans company reported $0.61 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.55 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $225.20 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $225.62 million. Provident Financial Services had a net margin of 21.95% and a return on equity of 10.98%. Provident Financial Services’s quarterly revenue was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.49 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Provident Financial Services, Inc will post 2.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Provident Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th were given a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 15th. Provident Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 40.85%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on PFS. Stephens started coverage on Provident Financial Services in a research note on Monday, June 8th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $24.00 target price for the company. Raymond James Financial raised their price target on Provident Financial Services from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. DA Davidson reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $23.00 price objective on shares of Provident Financial Services in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Weiss Ratings raised Provident Financial Services from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of Provident Financial Services from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $24.79.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO George Lista sold 2,556 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.40, for a total value of $57,254.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 109,262 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,447,468.80. The trade was a 2.29% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 3.02% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Provident Financial Services Company Profile

Provident Financial Services, Inc is the bank holding company for Provident Bank, a regional commercial bank headquartered in Jersey City, New Jersey. The company operates a network of full-service branches across New Jersey, the New York metropolitan area and eastern Pennsylvania, offering a range of personal and business banking solutions.

Its core products and services include checking and savings accounts, consumer and residential mortgage loans, commercial real estate financing and small-business lending.