Simplicity Solutions LLC Acquires Shares of 12,524 Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY)

Simplicity Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 12,524 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $136,000.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Quarry LP grew its position in shares of Valley National Bancorp by 198.1% in the 1st quarter. Quarry LP now owns 3,070 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 2,040 shares during the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Valley National Bancorp by 46.3% in the 4th quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 5,152 shares of the company’s stock valued at $58,000 after buying an additional 1,631 shares during the last quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC grew its position in shares of Valley National Bancorp by 24.4% in the 1st quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC now owns 8,665 shares of the company’s stock valued at $80,000 after buying an additional 1,700 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd grew its position in shares of Valley National Bancorp by 73.0% in the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 6,213 shares of the company’s stock valued at $81,000 after buying an additional 2,622 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. purchased a new position in shares of Valley National Bancorp in the 3rd quarter valued at $93,000. 61.00% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Valley National Bancorp Stock Up 5.5 %

VLY stock opened at $7.71 on Monday. Valley National Bancorp has a one year low of $6.39 and a one year high of $11.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.92 billion, a PE ratio of 8.12 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 0.99. The company has a fifty day moving average of $7.89 and a 200-day moving average of $8.84.

Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The company reported $0.22 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.25 by ($0.03). Valley National Bancorp had a return on equity of 8.67% and a net margin of 14.82%. The firm had revenue of $449.97 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $467.49 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.35 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Valley National Bancorp will post 0.93 EPS for the current year.

Valley National Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Thursday, March 14th were paid a $0.11 dividend. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.71%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 13th. Valley National Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.32%.

Insider Activity at Valley National Bancorp

In related news, EVP Joseph Chillura sold 49,715 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.18, for a total value of $406,668.70. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 545,249 shares in the company, valued at $4,460,136.82. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.88% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VLY has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Valley National Bancorp from $8.50 to $9.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 7th. TheStreet cut shares of Valley National Bancorp from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Valley National Bancorp from $12.00 to $9.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Valley National Bancorp from $11.00 to $8.50 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 13th. Finally, Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Valley National Bancorp in a research note on Friday, March 8th. They set an “underweight” rating and a $8.00 price target for the company. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $9.67.

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.