Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY) Reaches New 12-Month High Following Analyst Upgrade

Key Points

• Valley National Bancorp's stock reached a **new 52-week high** of $11.17 following an upgrade from **Wall Street Zen**, which changed its rating from sell to hold.
• Analysts have generally shown bullish sentiment toward Valley National Bancorp, with **twelve analysts rating it as a Buy** and a consensus price target of **$12.54**.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of **$0.11 per share**, translating to an annualized dividend yield of **4.0%** and a payout ratio of **56.41%**.

Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Monday after Wall Street Zen upgraded the stock from a sell rating to a hold rating. The stock traded as high as $11.17 and last traded at $11.13, with a volume of 5105237 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $10.64.

A number of other research firms also recently commented on VLY. Cowen started coverage on Valley National Bancorp in a research note on Wednesday, September 24th. They issued a "buy" rating for the company. Cantor Fitzgerald initiated coverage on shares of Valley National Bancorp in a report on Wednesday, September 10th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $12.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays restated an "underweight" rating on shares of Valley National Bancorp in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Valley National Bancorp in a research note on Saturday, September 27th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on Valley National Bancorp from $10.00 to $11.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Valley National Bancorp has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $12.54.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Valley National Bancorp

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VLY. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S acquired a new stake in shares of Valley National Bancorp in the 1st quarter valued at $35,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Valley National Bancorp by 206.6% during the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 4,298 shares of the company's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 2,896 shares in the last quarter. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Valley National Bancorp in the 1st quarter worth about $39,000. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp bought a new position in Valley National Bancorp in the second quarter worth about $39,000. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its position in shares of Valley National Bancorp by 11,831.1% during the 2nd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 5,369 shares of the company's stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 5,324 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 61.00% of the company's stock.

Valley National Bancorp Price Performance

The stock has a 50-day moving average of $10.21 and a two-hundred day moving average of $9.33. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The firm has a market cap of $6.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.25 and a beta of 1.12.

Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The company reported $0.23 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.22 by $0.01. Valley National Bancorp had a net margin of 12.87% and a return on equity of 5.89%. The firm had revenue of $495.01 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $495.79 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.13 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 9.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Valley National Bancorp will post 0.99 EPS for the current year.

Valley National Bancorp Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Monday, September 15th were given a dividend of $0.11 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 15th. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.0%. Valley National Bancorp's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 56.41%.

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.

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