Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY) Upgraded to Hold at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Valley National Bancorp has been upgraded from a "sell" to a "hold" rating by analysts at Wall Street Zen, reflecting a more positive outlook for the stock.
• Twelve research analysts currently rate Valley National Bancorp as a "Buy" with an average price target of $12.54, indicating investor confidence in its future performance.
• In the latest earnings report, the company exceeded analysts' EPS expectations, reporting $0.23 earnings per share compared to the anticipated $0.22, with quarterly revenue increasing by 9.3% year-over-year.

Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY - Get Free Report) was upgraded by investment analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday.

A number of other equities research analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Barclays reiterated an "underweight" rating on shares of Valley National Bancorp in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Cowen began coverage on shares of Valley National Bancorp in a research note on Wednesday, September 24th. They set a "buy" rating for the company. TD Cowen started coverage on shares of Valley National Bancorp in a research note on Thursday, September 25th. They set a "buy" rating and a $14.00 target price for the company. Cantor Fitzgerald started coverage on Valley National Bancorp in a research note on Wednesday, September 10th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $12.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Valley National Bancorp in a research note on Saturday, September 27th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $12.54.

Valley National Bancorp Stock Performance

VLY traded up $0.07 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $10.64. 10,306,999 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 9,261,696. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.64 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The company's fifty day moving average price is $10.21 and its 200-day moving average price is $9.33. Valley National Bancorp has a 52-week low of $7.48 and a 52-week high of $11.14.

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of VLY. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in Valley National Bancorp by 5.0% in the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 44,674 shares of the company's stock worth $405,000 after buying an additional 2,125 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in Valley National Bancorp by 988.5% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 82,899 shares of the company's stock worth $737,000 after buying an additional 75,283 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Valley National Bancorp in the 1st quarter worth $260,000. Breakwater Capital Group bought a new position in Valley National Bancorp in the 1st quarter worth $135,000. Finally, Sivia Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in Valley National Bancorp in the 1st quarter worth $209,000. Institutional investors own 61.00% of the company's stock.

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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