Legal & General Group Plc Sells 58,220 Shares of Valley National Bancorp $VLY

Legal & General Group Plc decreased its stake in shares of Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY) by 7.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 739,945 shares of the company’s stock after selling 58,220 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc owned about 0.13% of Valley National Bancorp worth $8,642,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. First Horizon Corp raised its position in shares of Valley National Bancorp by 52.5% during the 4th quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 3,219 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 1,108 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Valley National Bancorp during the 4th quarter valued at $39,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Valley National Bancorp by 77.4% during the 3rd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 4,574 shares of the company’s stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 1,996 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Valley National Bancorp by 244.7% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,884 shares of the company’s stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 4,177 shares during the period. Finally, Danske Bank A S bought a new stake in shares of Valley National Bancorp during the 3rd quarter valued at $55,000. 61.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Valley National Bancorp from $14.00 to $16.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Valley National Bancorp from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $16.00 price objective (up from $15.50) on shares of Valley National Bancorp in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of Valley National Bancorp from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $15.00 price target (up from $14.00) on shares of Valley National Bancorp in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $15.13.

Insider Activity at Valley National Bancorp

In related news, COO Russell Barrett sold 90,537 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.54, for a total transaction of $1,225,870.98. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 64,167 shares in the company, valued at $868,821.18. The trade was a 58.52% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 1.06% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Valley National Bancorp Price Performance

VLY stock opened at $13.79 on Friday. Valley National Bancorp has a 12 month low of $8.36 and a 12 month high of $14.12. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $13.17 and a 200 day moving average price of $12.50. The stock has a market cap of $7.64 billion, a PE ratio of 12.42 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The company reported $0.29 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.27 by $0.02. Valley National Bancorp had a net margin of 18.61% and a return on equity of 8.68%. The company had revenue of $1.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $531.89 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.18 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Valley National Bancorp will post 1.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Valley National Bancorp Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.11 per share. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. Valley National Bancorp’s payout ratio is 39.64%.

Valley National Bancorp Profile

Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ: VLY) is a regional bank holding company headquartered in Wayne, New Jersey, offering a comprehensive suite of commercial and consumer banking products and services. Through its banking subsidiary, Valley National Bank, the company provides deposit accounts, residential and commercial lending, mortgage services, treasury and cash management, foreign exchange and trade finance solutions. Complementary wealth management and insurance offerings round out its financial services platform, catering to individual, small-business and corporate clients.

Tracing its roots to the establishment of Wayne National Bank in 1927, Valley has grown into one of the largest banks in New Jersey by both assets and deposit share.