World Investment Advisors Buys 116,826 Shares of Valley National Bancorp $VLY

Key Points

• World Investment Advisors boosted its Valley National Bancorp stake by 141.7% in the first quarter, buying 116,826 additional shares and bringing its total to 199,243 shares worth about $2.45 million.
• Analysts remain broadly positive on VLY, with a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $15.57; several firms recently raised their targets or reiterated bullish ratings.
• Valley National Bancorp reported stronger-than-expected first-quarter results, posting $0.29 EPS versus $0.27 expected, and recently paid a quarterly dividend of $0.11 per share, implying a 2.9% annualized yield.

World Investment Advisors increased its holdings in Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY - Free Report) by 141.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 199,243 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 116,826 shares during the quarter. World Investment Advisors' holdings in Valley National Bancorp were worth $2,447,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Valley National Bancorp in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. First Horizon Corp grew its holdings 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 last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in Valley National Bancorp in the 4th quarter worth $39,000. Root Financial Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Valley National Bancorp by 127.3% in the 1st quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 3,976 shares of the company's stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 2,227 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its position in Valley National Bancorp by 24.5% in the 4th quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 4,347 shares of the company's stock valued at $51,000 after acquiring an additional 855 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 61.00% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently commented on VLY. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on Valley National Bancorp from $16.00 to $16.50 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, June 26th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted 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. Hovde Group boosted their target price on Valley National Bancorp from $16.00 to $16.50 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. UBS Group set a $17.00 price objective on Valley National Bancorp in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued a "positive" rating on shares of Valley National Bancorp in a research report on Monday, June 29th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Valley National Bancorp currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $15.57.

Valley National Bancorp Price Performance

VLY traded up $0.16 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $14.95. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,272,416 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,289,712. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $8.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.47 and a beta of 1.03. Valley National Bancorp has a twelve month low of $8.95 and a twelve month high of $14.98. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $13.85 and its 200 day simple moving average is $12.97.

Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY - Get Free Report) last released its 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $531.89 million. Valley National Bancorp had a net margin of 18.61% and a return on equity of 8.68%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.18 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Valley National Bancorp will post 1.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valley National Bancorp Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th were issued a $0.11 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 15th. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.9%. Valley National Bancorp's dividend payout ratio is currently 39.64%.

Insider Activity

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

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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