JPMorgan Chase & Co. Increases Stake in Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY)

JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY - Free Report) by 66.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,485,474 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 991,084 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned about 0.49% of Valley National Bancorp worth $22,518,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Financial Engines Advisors L.L.C. acquired a new stake in Valley National Bancorp during the 4th quarter worth $104,000. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. boosted its position in Valley National Bancorp by 9.5% during the fourth quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 11,527 shares of the company's stock worth $104,000 after acquiring an additional 1,002 shares during the last quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. lifted its stake in Valley National Bancorp by 80.2% in the 4th quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 536,633 shares of the company's stock worth $4,862,000 after purchasing an additional 238,890 shares in the last quarter. Corebridge Financial Inc. grew its holdings in Valley National Bancorp by 4.5% in the 4th quarter. Corebridge Financial Inc. now owns 766,535 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,945,000 after buying an additional 33,125 shares in the last quarter. Finally, United Services Automobile Association increased its position in Valley National Bancorp by 3.7% during the fourth quarter. United Services Automobile Association now owns 28,702 shares of the company's stock worth $260,000 after purchasing an additional 1,029 shares during 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 related news, EVP Joseph Chillura sold 50,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.21, for a total value of $510,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 495,249 shares in the company, valued at $5,056,492.29. This represents a 9.17 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.88% of the company's stock.

Valley National Bancorp Stock Up 2.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ VLY traded up $0.17 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $8.22. 794,322 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 9,270,070. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $9.10 and its 200-day simple moving average is $9.47. The company has a market cap of $4.61 billion, a PE ratio of 11.91 and a beta of 1.06. Valley National Bancorp has a twelve month low of $6.47 and a twelve month high of $11.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.98.

Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The company reported $0.13 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.15 by ($0.02). Valley National Bancorp had a return on equity of 5.14% and a net margin of 10.62%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.22 EPS. Research analysts predict that Valley National Bancorp will post 0.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valley National Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a dividend of $0.11 per share. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.35%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. Valley National Bancorp's payout ratio is 63.77%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VLY has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Valley National Bancorp from $10.00 to $11.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Valley National Bancorp from $11.00 to $12.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Valley National Bancorp from $10.50 to $11.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. StockNews.com cut Valley National Bancorp from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday. Finally, Barclays cut their price target on shares of Valley National Bancorp from $11.00 to $10.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $10.67.

Valley National Bancorp Company Profile

Valley National Bancorp operates as the holding company for Valley National Bank that provides various commercial, private banking, retail, insurance, and wealth management financial services products. It operates through Consumer Banking, Commercial Banking, and Treasury and Corporate other segments.