SG Americas Securities LLC Decreases Stake in Valley National Bancorp $VLY

Key Points

• SG Americas Securities LLC cut its stake in Valley National Bancorp by 66.5% in Q4, selling 145,496 shares and leaving it with 73,341 shares valued at about $857,000.
• Several analysts have upgraded VLY— including Raymond James and UBS—leaving the stock with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of about $14.71 (many targets around $15.00).
• Insider activity shows Director Carlos J. Vazquez bought 2,500 shares at $13.45 on Feb 17, increasing his stake by 142.7%, while the company recently reported an EPS beat ($0.31 vs. $0.29) and pays a quarterly dividend of $0.11 (≈3.3% yield).

SG Americas Securities LLC reduced its stake in shares of Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY - Free Report) by 66.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 73,341 shares of the company's stock after selling 145,496 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC's holdings in Valley National Bancorp were worth $857,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted 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 worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 1,996 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted 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 worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 4,177 shares in the last quarter. Danske Bank A S purchased a new stake in shares of Valley National Bancorp during the 3rd quarter worth $55,000. Vident Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Valley National Bancorp during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $93,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Valley National Bancorp by 199.4% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 9,632 shares of the company's stock worth $102,000 after acquiring an additional 6,415 shares in the last quarter. 61.00% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Valley National Bancorp

In other news, Director Carlos J. Vazquez bought 2,500 shares of Valley National Bancorp stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $13.45 per share, for a total transaction of $33,625.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 4,252 shares in the company, valued at approximately $57,189.40. This trade represents a 142.69% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.43% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Raymond James Financial raised Valley National Bancorp from a "market perform" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $15.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Hovde Group boosted their price objective on shares of Valley National Bancorp from $14.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Valley National Bancorp in a research report on Monday, December 15th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $15.00 price objective on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Valley National Bancorp from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, 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. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $14.71.

Valley National Bancorp Price Performance

VLY stock opened at $13.25 on Friday. Valley National Bancorp has a 1 year low of $7.64 and a 1 year high of $13.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 0.97. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $12.66 and its 200 day moving average price is $11.76. The firm has a market cap of $7.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.12 and a beta of 1.03.

Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The company reported $0.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $1.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $524.31 million. Valley National Bancorp had a net margin of 17.11% and a return on equity of 7.92%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.13 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Valley National Bancorp will post 0.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Valley National Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th were issued a $0.11 dividend. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 13th. Valley National Bancorp's dividend payout ratio is 43.56%.

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.

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