Traders Buy Large Volume of Valley National Bancorp Call Options (NASDAQ:VLY)

Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY) was the target of some unusual options trading on Thursday. Investors purchased 33,288 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of 621% compared to the typical daily volume of 4,615 call options.

Valley National Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of VLY traded up $0.21 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $9.25. 3,878,480 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,868,512. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $8.19 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $7.65. Valley National Bancorp has a 52-week low of $6.47 and a 52-week high of $11.22. The company has a market cap of $4.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.64 and a beta of 1.08.

Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The company reported $0.13 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.20 by ($0.07). The firm had revenue of $884.68 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $458.67 million. Valley National Bancorp had a return on equity of 6.53% and a net margin of 10.79%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.28 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Valley National Bancorp will post 0.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valley National Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Friday, September 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.11 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 13th. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.76%. Valley National Bancorp’s payout ratio is 51.76%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on VLY. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Valley National Bancorp from $8.00 to $9.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on Valley National Bancorp from $8.00 to $8.50 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Morgan Stanley raised Valley National Bancorp from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $8.00 to $9.50 in a report on Monday, August 5th. Wedbush restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $8.00 price objective on shares of Valley National Bancorp in a research report on Wednesday, May 22nd. Finally, Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Valley National Bancorp from $8.00 to $7.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, June 24th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Valley National Bancorp currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $8.31.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Valley National Bancorp

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new position in Valley National Bancorp in the second quarter worth about $38,000. EntryPoint Capital LLC purchased a new position in Valley National Bancorp during the 1st quarter worth approximately $43,000. Wolverine Asset Management LLC grew its position in Valley National Bancorp by 147.7% during the 2nd quarter. Wolverine Asset Management LLC now owns 9,325 shares of the company’s stock worth $65,000 after purchasing an additional 5,560 shares in the last quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Valley National Bancorp during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $81,000. Finally, Simplicity Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Valley National Bancorp during the 1st quarter valued at $92,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 61.00% of the company’s stock.

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.