Peoples Financial Services (NASDAQ:PFIS) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume – Here’s Why

Shares of Peoples Financial Services Corp. (NASDAQ:PFIS) saw unusually-high trading volume on Monday . Approximately 49,514 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 14% from the previous session’s volume of 43,409 shares.The stock last traded at $61.2550 and had previously closed at $60.12.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PFIS has been the topic of several recent research reports. Hovde Group raised their price target on Peoples Financial Services from $59.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Stephens increased their price objective on Peoples Financial Services from $50.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Peoples Financial Services from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Friday, February 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $58.50.

Peoples Financial Services Stock Up 1.1%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.97. The stock has a market capitalization of $608.72 million, a PE ratio of 6.73 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $57.40 and a 200-day moving average price of $53.72.

Peoples Financial Services (NASDAQ:PFIS) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.54 by ($0.11). The firm had revenue of $92.63 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $49.95 million. Peoples Financial Services had a return on equity of 18.06% and a net margin of 21.29%.

Peoples Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Friday, May 29th will be paid a $0.625 dividend. This represents a $2.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 29th. Peoples Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio is presently 27.69%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Peoples Financial Services

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Royal Bank of Canada grew its stake in Peoples Financial Services by 7.4% in the fourth quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 2,559 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $125,000 after purchasing an additional 176 shares during the period. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co lifted its position in Peoples Financial Services by 27.7% in the 4th quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 941 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 204 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its position in Peoples Financial Services by 4.4% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 5,513 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $245,000 after acquiring an additional 234 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its position in Peoples Financial Services by 59.1% in the 2nd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 969 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 360 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC lifted its position in Peoples Financial Services by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 14,507 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $707,000 after acquiring an additional 373 shares in the last quarter. 31.67% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Peoples Financial Services

Peoples Financial Services Corporation is the bank holding company for PeoplesBank, a community-focused commercial bank headquartered in Holyoke, Massachusetts. Through its wholly owned subsidiary, PeoplesBank, PFIS offers a full suite of banking services to individuals, small businesses, and commercial clients. These services include deposit accounts, consumer and residential mortgage lending, commercial and industrial lending, and treasury management solutions.

Founded in 1842, PeoplesBank has grown organically and through selective acquisitions to become a prominent community bank in Western Massachusetts and Northern Connecticut.