Peoples Financial Services (NASDAQ:PFIS) Sets New 12-Month High – Still a Buy?

Peoples Financial Services Corp. (NASDAQ:PFISGet Free Report)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $67.75 and last traded at $67.1630, with a volume of 7711 shares. The stock had previously closed at $66.37.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on PFIS shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Peoples Financial Services in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. Hovde Group increased their price objective on Peoples Financial Services from $59.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $58.50.

Read Our Latest Report on Peoples Financial Services

Peoples Financial Services Trading Down 1.3%

The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $60.44 and a 200 day simple moving average of $55.66. The company has a market cap of $671.87 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.43 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43.

Peoples Financial Services (NASDAQ:PFISGet Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.43 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.54 by ($0.11). The business had revenue of $92.63 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $49.95 million. Peoples Financial Services had a return on equity of 18.06% and a net margin of 21.29%.

Peoples Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 29th were given a dividend of $0.625 per share. This represents a $2.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 29th. Peoples Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 27.69%.

Institutional Trading of Peoples Financial Services

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Russell Investments Group Ltd. purchased a new position in Peoples Financial Services during the third quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Peoples Financial Services during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $44,000. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co lifted its stake in shares of Peoples Financial Services by 27.7% in the 4th quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 941 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its stake in shares of Peoples Financial Services by 59.1% in the 2nd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 969 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 360 shares during the period. Finally, Strs Ohio purchased a new stake in Peoples Financial Services during the fourth quarter worth $63,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 31.67% of the company’s stock.

About Peoples Financial Services

(Get Free Report)

Peoples Financial Services Corporation is the bank holding company for PeoplesBank, a community-focused commercial bank headquartered in Holyoke, Massachusetts. Through its wholly owned subsidiary, PeoplesBank, PFIS offers a full suite of banking services to individuals, small businesses, and commercial clients. These services include deposit accounts, consumer and residential mortgage lending, commercial and industrial lending, and treasury management solutions.

Founded in 1842, PeoplesBank has grown organically and through selective acquisitions to become a prominent community bank in Western Massachusetts and Northern Connecticut.

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