Provident Financial (NASDAQ:PROV) Stock Price Passes Above 200-Day Moving Average – Should You Sell?

Shares of Provident Financial Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PROV) crossed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Friday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $14.32 and traded as high as $16.01. Provident Financial shares last traded at $15.91, with a volume of 4,763 shares.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on PROV. Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of Provident Financial from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on Provident Financial in a report on Saturday. They set a “hold” rating on the stock.

Provident Financial Stock Down 1.4 %

The business’s fifty day moving average price is $15.90 and its 200 day moving average price is $14.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $107.60 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.60 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a current ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.93.

Provident Financial (NASDAQ:PROV) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 28th. The financial services provider reported $0.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.25 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $14.97 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.74 million. Provident Financial had a return on equity of 5.78% and a net margin of 12.58%. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.25 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Provident Financial Holdings, Inc. will post 1.05 EPS for the current year.

Provident Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 5th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 14th were paid a dividend of $0.14 per share. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.52%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 14th. Provident Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 51.38%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A hedge fund recently raised its stake in Provident Financial stock. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in shares of Provident Financial Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PROV) by 4.9% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 25,657 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,206 shares during the quarter. Empowered Funds LLC owned about 0.38% of Provident Financial worth $368,000 at the end of the most recent quarter. 71.34% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Provident Financial

Provident Financial Holdings, Inc operates as the holding company for Provident Savings Bank, F.S.B. that provides community banking services to consumers and small to mid-sized businesses in the Inland Empire region of Southern California. The company's deposit products include checking, savings, and money market accounts, as well as time deposits; and loan portfolio consists of single-family, multi-family, commercial real estate, construction, mortgage, commercial business, and consumer loans.