Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY) Reaches New 1-Year High on Analyst Upgrade

Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY) reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday after Barclays raised their price target on the stock from $14.00 to $15.00. Barclays currently has an equal weight rating on the stock. Valley National Bancorp traded as high as $15.01 and last traded at $14.87, with a volume of 4789281 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $14.79.

Several other research analysts have also commented on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of Valley National Bancorp from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Valley National Bancorp from $15.00 to $17.50 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. Hovde Group raised their target price on shares of Valley National Bancorp from $16.00 to $16.50 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 26th. National Bank Financial set a $17.50 target price on shares of Valley National Bancorp in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on shares of Valley National Bancorp from $14.00 to $16.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $15.63.

Insider Buying and Selling at Valley National Bancorp

In other Valley National Bancorp news, CAO Mitchell L. Crandell sold 25,495 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $14.63, for a total value of $372,991.85. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 76,116 shares in the company, valued at $1,113,577.08. This trade represents a 25.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO Russell Barrett sold 90,537 shares of Valley National Bancorp stock in a transaction on Monday, April 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.54, for a total value of $1,225,870.98. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 64,167 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $868,821.18. This trade represents a 58.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 1.06% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Valley National Bancorp

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Oliver Luxxe Assets LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Valley National Bancorp in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,714,000. Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. bought a new position in Valley National Bancorp in the third quarter worth approximately $4,753,000. Holocene Advisors LP purchased a new position in Valley National Bancorp during the 3rd quarter worth $34,593,000. Azora Capital LP purchased a new position in Valley National Bancorp during the 3rd quarter worth $103,120,000. Finally, Barclays PLC increased its holdings in Valley National Bancorp by 47.3% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 2,164,159 shares of the company’s stock worth $22,940,000 after purchasing an additional 694,459 shares during the period. 61.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Valley National Bancorp Trading Up 0.5%

The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $13.88 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $12.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.40 and a beta of 1.03.

Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The company reported $0.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.27 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $1.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $531.89 million. Valley National Bancorp had a return on equity of 8.68% and a net margin of 18.61%.During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.18 EPS. On average, 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 firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th were issued a dividend of $0.11 per share. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 15th. Valley National Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is presently 39.64%.

Valley National Bancorp Company 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.