Provident Financial (NASDAQ:PROV) Share Price Passes Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average – Here’s Why

Provident Financial Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PROV)’s share price crossed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Wednesday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $16.73 and traded as high as $18.34. Provident Financial shares last traded at $18.03, with a volume of 11,466 shares changing hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently commented on PROV. Zacks Research raised shares of Provident Financial to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on shares of Provident Financial from $17.00 to $18.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Provident Financial in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $18.00.

Provident Financial Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $112.69 million, a PE ratio of 17.51 and a beta of 0.33. The company has a current ratio of 1.20, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.45. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $17.19 and its 200-day moving average price is $16.73.

Provident Financial (NASDAQ:PROV) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 28th. The financial services provider reported $0.35 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.29 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $15.22 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.00 million. Provident Financial had a return on equity of 5.22% and a net margin of 11.16%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Provident Financial Holdings, Inc. will post 1.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Provident Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, August 13th will be given a dividend of $0.14 per share. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 13th. Provident Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 54.37%.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP David Weiant sold 2,732 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.12, for a total transaction of $46,771.84. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 6,175 shares in the company, valued at $105,716. This represents a 30.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders have sold a total of 4,744 shares of company stock worth $81,076 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 11.49% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Provident Financial

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Susquehanna International Group LLP purchased a new position in shares of Provident Financial during the third quarter worth $273,000. Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in Provident Financial by 7.9% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 29,084 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $424,000 after acquiring an additional 2,120 shares in the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. lifted its holdings in Provident Financial by 13.2% in the fourth quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 29,657 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $472,000 after acquiring an additional 3,459 shares during the period. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Provident Financial by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 66,654 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,060,000 after purchasing an additional 1,834 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fourthstone LLC boosted its position in Provident Financial by 52.6% in the 4th quarter. Fourthstone LLC now owns 352,151 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $5,603,000 after purchasing an additional 121,329 shares in the last quarter. 71.34% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Provident Financial Company Profile

Provident Financial Services, Inc (NASDAQ: PROV) is a bank holding company headquartered in Jersey City, New Jersey, that conducts its operations through its wholly owned subsidiary, Provident Bank. With origins dating back to 1839, the company has grown into a full-service financial institution offering a broad spectrum of products and services to individuals, small businesses and commercial clients.

The company’s principal business activities include retail banking, commercial lending, mortgage finance and wealth management.