Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY) Price Target Raised to $17.50

Key Points

• JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Valley National Bancorp’s price target from $15.00 to $17.50 and kept an overweight rating, implying about 18% upside from the current share price.
• Other analysts also remain generally positive, with several firms lifting targets or reiterating bullish ratings; the stock now has a Moderate Buy consensus and an average price target of $15.43.
• Valley National Bancorp recently reported better-than-expected earnings, with quarterly EPS of $0.29 versus estimates of $0.27 and revenue of $1.01 billion, while company executives also disclosed recent stock sales.

Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY - Get Free Report) had its target price lifted by analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $15.00 to $17.50 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an "overweight" rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s price objective points to a potential upside of 18.05% from the company's current price.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on VLY. National Bank Financial set a $17.50 target price on shares of Valley National Bancorp in a research report on Wednesday. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on shares of Valley National Bancorp from $16.00 to $16.50 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday. Morgan Stanley reissued a "positive" rating on shares of Valley National Bancorp in a research report on Monday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective 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. Finally, TD Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Valley National Bancorp in a report on Wednesday, June 17th. 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Valley National Bancorp has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $15.43.

Valley National Bancorp Stock Performance

NASDAQ:VLY traded up $0.17 on Wednesday, hitting $14.82. The stock had a trading volume of 425,453 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,320,561. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $13.75 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $12.89. The stock has a market cap of $8.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.36 and a beta of 1.03. Valley National Bancorp has a 52-week low of $8.95 and a 52-week high of $14.94. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Valley National Bancorp

In other Valley National Bancorp 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 owned 64,167 shares in the company, valued at approximately $868,821.18. This represents a 58.52% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Mitchell L. Crandell sold 25,495 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.63, for a total value of $372,991.85. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 76,116 shares in the company, valued at $1,113,577.08. The trade was a 25.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 1.06% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VLY. Oliver Luxxe Assets LLC purchased a new stake in Valley National Bancorp in the 4th quarter worth $2,714,000. Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Valley National Bancorp during the third quarter valued at about $4,753,000. Picton Mahoney Asset Management purchased a new position in shares of Valley National Bancorp during the third quarter valued at about $6,240,000. Holocene Advisors LP bought a new stake in shares of Valley National Bancorp in the third quarter worth about $34,593,000. Finally, Azora Capital LP bought a new stake in shares of Valley National Bancorp in the third quarter worth about $103,120,000. 61.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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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