"We felt if we didn't come to market as soon as we did, we would be swamped," said James W. Blake, Provident vice president. "But we got caught in the down drift." Provident originally had estimated a price between $10.25 and $13.75. The stampede of new issues elsewhere forced it to to come in at $10.50.

[Paul E. Bulman] said he is satisfied, but added: "They could still advise their clients how to vote. They certainly didn't buy it (Provident stock* for the dividend." (Provident isn't paying a dividend in the foreseeable future, it said in its prospectus.)

Provident, under Massachusetts law, still has six months to go before anyone could take it over. One defense strategy is to find a white knight - a cash-rich company congenial to Provident's current management to take them over. "Or you just buy a pile of attorneys," said Bulman, "and fight it as long as you can."