Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY) Price Target Raised to $14.00 at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods

Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY) had its target price increased by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $13.00 to $14.00 in a report released on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods currently has a market perform rating on the stock.

VLY has been the subject of several other research reports. Citigroup reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Valley National Bancorp in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their target price on shares of Valley National Bancorp from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Hovde Group raised their target price on shares of Valley National Bancorp from $14.00 to $15.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Valley National Bancorp from $14.00 to $16.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Valley National Bancorp from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $14.71.

Valley National Bancorp Stock Up 2.2%

Shares of NASDAQ VLY opened at $13.25 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. Valley National Bancorp has a 52 week low of $7.64 and a 52 week high of $13.87. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $12.66 and a 200 day moving average price of $11.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.12 and a beta of 1.03.

Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The company reported $0.31 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.29 by $0.02. Valley National Bancorp had a net margin of 17.11% and a return on equity of 7.92%. The firm had revenue of $1.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $524.31 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.13 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Valley National Bancorp will post 0.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valley National Bancorp Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th were issued a dividend of $0.11 per share. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 13th. Valley National Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 43.56%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Valley National Bancorp news, Director Carlos J. Vazquez bought 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $13.45 per share, for a total transaction of $33,625.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 4,252 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $57,189.40. The trade was a 142.69% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.43% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Valley National Bancorp

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Valley National Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. First Horizon Corp grew its holdings in shares of Valley National Bancorp by 52.5% during the fourth quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 3,219 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 1,108 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Valley National Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth about $39,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Valley National Bancorp by 77.4% during the third quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 4,574 shares of the company’s stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 1,996 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Valley National Bancorp by 24.5% during the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 4,347 shares of the company’s stock worth $51,000 after buying an additional 855 shares in the last quarter. 61.00% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.