StockNews.com Begins Coverage on Provident Financial (NASDAQ:PROV)

Analysts at StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Provident Financial (NASDAQ:PROV) in a research note issued on Tuesday. The brokerage set a “hold” rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

Separately, Piper Sandler cut their price objective on shares of Provident Financial from $17.00 to $16.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th.

Provident Financial Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:PROV opened at $14.20 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $95.01 million, a PE ratio of 15.60 and a beta of 0.35. Provident Financial has a twelve month low of $12.01 and a twelve month high of $16.70. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $15.29 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $15.33.

Provident Financial (NASDAQ:PROV) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The financial services provider reported $0.13 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.31 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Provident Financial will post 0.9 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Provident Financial

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Black Maple Capital Management LP boosted its position in shares of Provident Financial by 8.9% in the fourth quarter. Black Maple Capital Management LP now owns 31,128 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $495,000 after acquiring an additional 2,557 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in Provident Financial by 25.9% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 26,464 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $421,000 after purchasing an additional 5,445 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its position in Provident Financial by 7.4% during the fourth quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 334,789 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,326,000 after purchasing an additional 23,117 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in Provident Financial by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 486,296 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $7,737,000 after purchasing an additional 1,342 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fourthstone LLC lifted its position in Provident Financial by 30.5% during the fourth quarter. Fourthstone LLC now owns 90,080 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,433,000 after purchasing an additional 21,030 shares during the last quarter. 71.34% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.