Exploring Provident Financial Services, Inc. (PFS) Investor Profile: Who’s Buying and Why?

You're looking at Provident Financial Services, Inc. (PFS) and trying to figure out who's actually holding the shares and why, especially with the regional banking sector still navigating rate uncertainty, right? The story here is less about retail speculation and more about deep institutional conviction: roughly 70% of Provident Financial Services' stock is locked up by major institutions like BlackRock, Inc. and Vanguard Group Inc. This isn't a passive bet; it's a clear signal that sophisticated capital sees value in a bank with a market capitalization of approximately $2.42 billion as of November 2025. Why the conviction? The bank just delivered a strong Q3 2025, posting a net income of $71.7 million, which translates to an Earnings Per Share (EPS) of $0.55, and its current dividend yield sits around a compelling 5.2%. That's a powerful combination of a solid income stream and a tangible book value per share of $15.13, suggesting a defensible valuation. So, are these institutions buying for growth, for yield, or for a defintely undervalued asset? Let's break down the investor profile to see what their play is.

Who Invests in Provident Financial Services, Inc. (PFS) and Why?

The investor profile for Provident Financial Services, Inc. (PFS) is dominated by large institutions, which is typical for a stable, dividend-paying regional bank. The core investment thesis is simple: a compelling value play supported by a strong dividend yield and a significant 2025 earnings rebound following merger integration costs. You're looking at a classic 'sleep-well-at-night' stock that offers income and a clear path to capital appreciation as the market reprices its forward earnings.

Institutional money managers hold the lion's share, controlling approximately 71.97% of the company's stock as of late 2025. This high concentration means the stock price is defintely sensitive to the trading actions of a few major players. Retail investors, including individual accounts and public companies, make up the remaining significant portion, holding around 29.41% of the total shares.

Here's the quick breakdown of the major investor types and their stake:

• Institutional Investors: Own ~72%. These are your index funds, mutual funds, and large asset managers.
• Retail/Public Investors: Own ~29%. This includes individual investors and smaller funds.
• Hedge Funds: Their investment is not meaningful, suggesting the stock is less of a short-term, high-volatility trade.

Key Investor Types and Their Stakes

The institutional landscape for Provident Financial Services, Inc. is led by the behemoths of the asset management world. These are largely passive and quantitative funds that buy the entire index, so their presence signals stability and inclusion in key small-cap and value-oriented benchmarks. The top 12 shareholders collectively hold about 51% of the business, which is a significant concentration.

The table below shows the top institutional holders as of mid-2025, illustrating who is driving the institutional ownership:

Motivations: Dividends and the 2025 Earnings Rebound

Investors are attracted to Provident Financial Services, Inc. for two primary reasons: its consistent income stream and the significant jump in profitability expected for the 2025 fiscal year. The bank is seen as a high-quality regional operator focused on commercial lending and wealth management services through its Beacon Trust subsidiary, which diversifies its revenue.

The dividend is a major draw. Provident Financial Services, Inc. maintains a quarterly cash dividend of $0.24 per share, which translates to an attractive annualized yield of roughly 5.14% based on recent stock prices. For income investors, that's a solid return in the current environment.

The 2025 financial performance is the other big story. After absorbing costs from its merger, the company delivered a strong Q3 2025, reporting record revenue of $221.8 million and GAAP Earnings Per Share (EPS) of $0.55. Analysts project the full-year 2025 EPS will be marginally above $2.00/share, nearly double the prior year's performance. This earnings surge is the catalyst for a potential re-rating of the stock.

Investment Strategies: Value and Long-Term Income

The typical strategies employed by investors in Provident Financial Services, Inc. lean heavily toward value and long-term income generation. This isn't a momentum stock; it's a fundamental value proposition.

• Value Investing: The stock trades at a forward Price-to-Earnings (P/E) ratio of approximately 8.30 based on 2025 earnings estimates, which is a significant discount to the broader U.S. financial sector. Furthermore, the stock's recent price of around $18.49 is noted to be well below the estimated DCF (Discounted Cash Flow) fair value of $33.72. This gap is catnip for value funds.
• Long-Term Holding for Income: The consistent $0.96 annual dividend attracts retirees, endowments, and mutual funds whose mandate is to provide stable, high-yield income. They are less concerned with short-term price volatility and more focused on the dividend payout ratio and the bank's strong tangible book value per share (TBVPS) of $15.13 as of Q3 2025.
• Catalyst-Driven Investing: A smaller group of investors is focused on the merger synergy realization. The consensus analyst price target is around $22.50, suggesting a clear upside of over 20% from recent trading levels as the market fully digests the improved profitability and margin expansion.

For a deeper dive into the bank's core strengths, you should read Breaking Down Provident Financial Services, Inc. (PFS) Financial Health: Key Insights for Investors.

Institutional Ownership and Major Shareholders of Provident Financial Services, Inc. (PFS)

You're looking at Provident Financial Services, Inc. (PFS) and trying to figure out who the big players are and what they're doing. The direct takeaway is that institutional investors-the mutual funds, pension funds, and asset managers-are the dominant force here, owning roughly 70% to 71.97% of the company's stock. This high concentration means the stock's movement is defintely sensitive to their collective decisions.

As of the most recent filings (Q3 2025), the ownership structure is top-heavy, with the largest asset managers holding substantial stakes. These investors are primarily buying for long-term index tracking or as a core holding within a diversified financial portfolio, which is typical for a regional bank holding company like Provident Financial Services, Inc.

Top Institutional Investors and Their Shareholdings

The largest shareholders in Provident Financial Services, Inc. are the titans of the asset management world. These firms hold billions in assets and their positions in PFS are significant, giving them a powerful voice in the company's strategic direction. Here's a snapshot of the major holders as of the September 30, 2025, reporting date:

The quick math shows that BlackRock, Inc. and Vanguard Group Inc. alone control a massive chunk of the outstanding shares, reflecting a core investment in the regional banking sector. You can see this as a vote of confidence in the company's Mission Statement, Vision, & Core Values of Provident Financial Services, Inc. (PFS).

Recent Shifts: Are Institutions Buying or Selling?

The trend is mixed but leans toward accumulation, which is a near-term opportunity. In the most recent quarter, we saw 136 institutional investors add to their positions, while 105 decreased their stakes. This suggests a healthy debate on the stock's valuation and future prospects, but overall, there's a net inflow of capital from institutions.

For example, BlackRock, Inc. increased its position by over 224,000 shares in Q3 2025. But Vanguard Group Inc. trimmed its stake by nearly 240,000 shares in the same period. One major move to note was Wellington Management Group LLP, which added a substantial 2,574,527 shares in Q2 2025, showing strong conviction in the stock's value proposition.

This back-and-forth trading is normal. Still, the fact that more institutions are buying than selling indicates a generally positive sentiment following the company's Q3 2025 results, which showed a net income of $71.7 million and a net interest income increase to $194.3 million. It's a sign that the market is digesting the strong earnings.

Impact of Institutional Investors on Stock and Strategy

When institutions own this much of a company, they play two crucial roles: they influence the stock price and they influence corporate strategy. Their sheer volume of trading can create volatility. If two or three of the largest holders decide to sell even a small percentage of their stake simultaneously, the stock price will drop significantly.

More importantly, the board of Provident Financial Services, Inc. must pay close attention to the preferences of these large shareholders. Their influence is felt in key areas:

• Capital Allocation: They push for consistent dividends-PFS announced a quarterly dividend of $0.24 per share-and efficient share repurchase programs.
• Risk Management: Following strong Q3 2025 results that included reduced net loan charge-offs, institutions expect management to maintain that asset quality.
• Strategic Direction: They hold management accountable for sustaining growth in core areas, like the significant growth seen in the commercial and industrial loan portfolio.

What this estimate hides is the passive nature of some of the largest holders (like Vanguard and BlackRock), whose buying is often tied to index inclusion, not a deep-dive, activist thesis. But their presence still provides a floor of demand for the stock. Finance: Monitor the top 10 institutional holders' 13F filings for Q4 2025 by the February 15, 2026, deadline to confirm this trend.

Key Investors and Their Impact on Provident Financial Services, Inc. (PFS)

You need to know who is driving the bus at Provident Financial Services, Inc. (PFS), because their trading decisions can move the stock, and their collective power shapes the company's long-term strategy. The short answer is that major institutions-the big index and asset managers-hold the vast majority of the shares, giving them significant, though often passive, influence.

As of late 2025, institutional investors own roughly 70% to 71.97% of Provident Financial Services, Inc. stock, which is a substantial controlling interest. This means the stock price is defintely sensitive to their trading actions; if a few large funds decide to sell, you'll feel the drop. The general public, mostly individual investors like you, holds about 23.68% of the shares.

The Institutional Heavyweights: Who Owns the Largest Stakes?

The investor profile is dominated by the giants of the asset management world-firms that manage vast pools of capital for pensions, endowments, and mutual funds. These aren't typically activist investors looking to force a sale, but their sheer size gives them a powerful voice in governance matters, like executive compensation and board elections.

Here's the quick math: the top 13 shareholders collectively hold 51% of the business, which is a clear concentration of power. The three largest shareholders alone control over 30% of the company.

• BlackRock, Inc. is the largest shareholder, holding 14.53% of shares outstanding.
• Vanguard Group Inc is the second largest, with an 11.25% stake.
• Dimensional Fund Advisors LP holds the third largest stake at 5.89%.

The largest individual shareholder is Christopher P. Martin, who owns 0.79% of the company, with his stake valued at approximately $20.56 million.

Recent Investment Flows and Strategic Implications

When you look at recent moves, you get a sense of near-term sentiment. While institutions collectively increased their stake to 729.49K shares in the quarter ending September 2025, the activity is mixed. This is a bank holding company, so major investors are looking for stability, strong asset quality, and consistent returns, which you can see reflected in the Mission Statement, Vision, & Core Values of Provident Financial Services, Inc. (PFS).

In terms of buying, Sound Income Strategies, LLC was a notable buyer in September 2025, adding 93.11K shares. Also, Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake by 1.7% during the second quarter of 2025, bringing its total holding to 1,402,478 shares. This tells me that some larger, established players are adding to their positions, signaling confidence in the bank's recent performance, which includes a Q3 2025 net income of $71.7 million and a record revenue of $222 million.

However, you need to balance this with insider activity. Insiders, those closest to the business, have been net sellers over the last 12 and 3 months. This isn't necessarily a red flag-it could be for personal reasons-but it's a data point that cuts against the institutional buying trend, and it's something to watch closely.

Market Impact and Investor Sentiment

If you're looking at Provident Financial Services, Inc. (PFS), the big picture from major shareholders is a blend of strong institutional conviction and a nuanced, but generally positive, analyst outlook. Institutional investors-the big money managers-hold a commanding stake of nearly 70% of the company's shares. That's a huge vote of confidence, meaning the people whose job is to study banks like this are defintely in for the long haul.

The core sentiment is a 'Moderate Buy' or 'Buy' consensus across Wall Street, which is a solid endorsement. They see a banking operation that is performing well post-merger, evidenced by the Q3 2025 net income of $71.7 million, or $0.55 per diluted share. This performance is why analysts have set an average 12-month price target between $22.50 and $23.00, representing a significant upside from the stock's recent trading range around $17.77 in mid-November 2025.

Who's Driving the Ownership and Why They're Buying

The investor profile for Provident Financial Services, Inc. is dominated by passive and active institutional giants. These firms aren't buying for a quick trade; they're buying for stability, dividend yield, and long-term value in the regional banking sector. They see a company with total assets of $24.5 billion as of June 30, 2025, which is a substantial, well-capitalized base. Their investment thesis centers on the bank's strong operational metrics, like the annualized return on average tangible equity of 16.01% for the third quarter of 2025. That's a very healthy return in this environment.

Here's the quick math: these institutions are betting on the bank's ability to generate consistent profit and maintain its footprint across New Jersey, eastern Pennsylvania, and New York. You can see their strategic focus aligns with the bank's core values by reviewing the Mission Statement, Vision, & Core Values of Provident Financial Services, Inc. (PFS).

The top institutional holders, based on September 30, 2025, filings, show the scale of this commitment:

• Blackrock, Inc. holds over 19.2 million shares.
• Vanguard Group Inc. holds over 14.4 million shares.
• Dimensional Fund Advisors LP holds over 7.6 million shares.

Recent Market Reactions and Insider Moves

While the institutional ownership is high, you still need to watch the near-term signals. The market has shown some choppiness, and recent insider activity suggests a few key executives are taking some chips off the table. In October 2025, a Director sold 25,000 shares, and an Executive Vice President and another Director sold a combined 28,000 shares. Insider selling doesn't always signal a problem, but it's a data point you can't ignore-it often means management sees other opportunities or just wants to diversify their personal wealth. Still, the stock did see a technical 'buy signal' issued from a pivot bottom point on November 17, 2025, which suggests short-term traders are finding a floor.

The overall market response to the Q3 2025 earnings report, where the company reported record revenue for the second consecutive quarter, was largely positive, reinforcing the 'Moderate Buy' consensus. The market likes seeing an earnings per share (EPS) of $0.55, which met analyst consensus estimates.

Analyst Perspectives on Key Investor Impact

The sheer size of the institutional ownership-nearly 70%-means these investors are the market for Provident Financial Services, Inc. Their long-term holding patterns provide a stability cushion for the stock. Analysts view this high institutional float as a positive for future capital raises or strategic moves, as it implies a sophisticated and stable shareholder base that understands the banking business.

Analyst price targets reflect a belief that the company's strong financial health will eventually translate to a higher stock price. The average price target of approximately $22.70 represents a forecasted upside of about 25.95% from the stock's price of $18.02 in November 2025. The analyst community is optimistic because the underlying business is strong, as shown here:

The key takeaway for you is that the smart money is heavily invested and the analysts are bullish on the company's financial trajectory. Your next step should be to compare the consensus price target to your own discounted cash flow (DCF) model to see if you agree with the $22.70 valuation.