HighTower Advisors LLC Raises Stock Position in Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY)

HighTower Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY) by 140.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 76,493 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 44,662 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC’s holdings in Valley National Bancorp were worth $693,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in shares of Valley National Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Sapient Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Valley National Bancorp in the 4th quarter worth $103,000. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in Valley National Bancorp by 12.0% in the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 12,812 shares of the company’s stock worth $116,000 after purchasing an additional 1,371 shares in the last quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Valley National Bancorp by 11.8% during the 3rd quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 14,365 shares of the company’s stock valued at $130,000 after purchasing an additional 1,521 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co purchased a new position in shares of Valley National Bancorp during the third quarter valued at about $154,000. Institutional investors own 61.00% of the company’s stock.

Valley National Bancorp Stock Down 2.2 %

Shares of VLY opened at $8.78 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The business has a fifty day moving average of $9.56 and a 200 day moving average of $9.50. The company has a market cap of $4.92 billion, a PE ratio of 12.72 and a beta of 1.11. Valley National Bancorp has a 52-week low of $6.47 and a 52-week high of $11.10.

Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The company reported $0.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.15 by ($0.02). Valley National Bancorp had a return on equity of 5.14% and a net margin of 10.62%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.22 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Valley National Bancorp will post 0.99 EPS for the current year.

Valley National Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $0.11 dividend. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.01%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Valley National Bancorp’s payout ratio is currently 63.77%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $12.50 target price on shares of Valley National Bancorp in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Piper Sandler raised Valley National Bancorp from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $11.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Monday, March 24th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Valley National Bancorp from $10.00 to $11.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Valley National Bancorp from $10.00 to $11.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Valley National Bancorp from $10.50 to $11.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $10.78.

Insider Buying and Selling at Valley National Bancorp

In other Valley National Bancorp news, EVP Joseph Chillura sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.21, for a total value of $510,500.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 495,249 shares in the company, valued at $5,056,492.29. This trade represents a 9.17 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.88% of the company’s stock.

Valley National Bancorp 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.