Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. Sells 280,752 Shares of Valley National Bancorp $VLY

Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. cut its holdings in shares of Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY - Free Report) by 14.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,654,877 shares of the company's stock after selling 280,752 shares during the period. Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. owned about 0.30% of Valley National Bancorp worth $19,329,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VLY. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Valley National Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. First Horizon Corp lifted its stake in Valley National Bancorp by 52.5% during the fourth quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 3,219 shares of the company's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 1,108 shares during the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in Valley National Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth $39,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Valley National Bancorp by 77.4% during the third quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 4,574 shares of the company's stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 1,996 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Valley National Bancorp by 24.5% during the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 4,347 shares of the company's stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 855 shares during the last quarter. 61.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on VLY shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on 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. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on Valley National Bancorp from $14.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Valley National Bancorp from $14.50 to $15.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. 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 research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price target on Valley National Bancorp from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued 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 target price of $15.13.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, COO Russell Barrett sold 90,537 shares of the 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 completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 64,167 shares in the company, valued at $868,821.18. This represents a 58.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.06% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Valley National Bancorp Stock Up 1.5%

Shares of VLY opened at $14.63 on Friday. Valley National Bancorp has a 52 week low of $8.36 and a 52 week high of $14.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.18 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 0.96. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $13.40 and a 200-day moving average of $12.63.

Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The company reported $0.29 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.27 by $0.02. Valley National Bancorp had a return on equity of 8.68% and a net margin of 18.61%.The company had revenue of $1.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $531.89 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.18 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Valley National Bancorp will post 1.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Valley National Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th will be issued a $0.11 dividend. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date is 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.

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