Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY) Reaches New 52-Week High - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• Valley National Bancorp reached a new 52-week high of $11.10 during trading, indicating positive market performance, with a last traded price of $11.05.
• Equity analysts have shown optimism, with nine analysts giving a Buy rating and an average price target of $11.85, following several upgrades from major firms.
• The company reported a 9.3% increase in revenue year-over-year, with an earnings per share (EPS) of $0.23 for the last quarter, which exceeded expectations.

Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY - Get Free Report)'s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $11.10 and last traded at $11.05, with a volume of 6304093 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $10.72.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on Valley National Bancorp from $11.00 to $13.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, September 12th. Hovde Group assumed coverage on Valley National Bancorp in a research report on Wednesday, September 10th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $12.50 price objective on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded Valley National Bancorp from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 26th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Valley National Bancorp in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. They set a "hold" rating and a $10.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Citigroup upgraded Valley National Bancorp from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $10.00 to $13.50 in a research report on Monday. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Valley National Bancorp currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $11.85.

Valley National Bancorp Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $6.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.23 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 0.97. The company has a 50 day moving average of $9.92 and a 200 day moving average of $9.18.

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

Valley National Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be given a dividend of $0.11 per share. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. Valley National Bancorp's dividend payout ratio is currently 56.41%.

Institutional Trading of Valley National Bancorp

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. State of Michigan Retirement System raised its stake in Valley National Bancorp by 1.1% during the 1st quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 113,681 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,011,000 after acquiring an additional 1,200 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC raised its stake in Valley National Bancorp by 23.2% during the 2nd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 6,895 shares of the company's stock valued at $62,000 after acquiring an additional 1,297 shares during the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System raised its stake in Valley National Bancorp by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 133,100 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,183,000 after acquiring an additional 1,300 shares during the last quarter. Forum Financial Management LP raised its stake in Valley National Bancorp by 7.8% during the 1st quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 19,142 shares of the company's stock valued at $170,000 after acquiring an additional 1,381 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of Alaska Department of Revenue raised its stake in shares of Valley National Bancorp by 2.7% during the 1st quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 55,597 shares of the company's stock worth $494,000 after buying an additional 1,465 shares in the last quarter. 61.00% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Valley National Bancorp

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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