Provident Financial (NASDAQ:PROV) Coverage Initiated by Analysts at StockNews.com

StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Provident Financial (NASDAQ:PROV) in a research report report published on Saturday morning. The brokerage issued a hold rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

Separately, Piper Sandler dropped their target price on shares of Provident Financial from $17.00 to $16.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 29th.

Provident Financial Stock Up 0.5 %

NASDAQ:PROV opened at $15.59 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.91, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 1.25. The company has a market capitalization of $104.31 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.13 and a beta of 0.39. Provident Financial has a one year low of $12.01 and a one year high of $16.70. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $15.78 and a 200 day simple moving average of $15.17.

Provident Financial (NASDAQ:PROV) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The financial services provider reported $0.13 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.26 by ($0.13). Provident Financial had a return on equity of 4.81% and a net margin of 10.39%. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.31 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Provident Financial will post 0.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Provident Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 13th will be given a dividend of $0.14 per share. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.59%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 13th. Provident Financial’s payout ratio is 61.54%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in Provident Financial by 4.9% in the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 25,657 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $368,000 after buying an additional 1,206 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in shares of Provident Financial by 25.9% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 26,464 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $421,000 after acquiring an additional 5,445 shares during the period. Black Maple Capital Management LP lifted its position in Provident Financial by 8.9% in the 4th quarter. Black Maple Capital Management LP now owns 31,128 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $495,000 after purchasing an additional 2,557 shares during the last quarter. Fourthstone LLC acquired a new position in Provident Financial during the 3rd quarter valued at about $991,000. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its position in Provident Financial by 7.4% in the 4th quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 334,789 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $5,326,000 after purchasing an additional 23,117 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.34% of the company’s stock.

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.