World Investment Advisors Acquires 54,562 Shares of Valley National Bancorp $VLY

World Investment Advisors increased its holdings in shares of Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY) by 195.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 82,417 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 54,562 shares during the period. World Investment Advisors’ holdings in Valley National Bancorp were worth $963,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. First Horizon Corp boosted its stake 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 valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 1,108 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Valley National Bancorp during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its stake 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 valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 1,996 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Valley National Bancorp by 244.7% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,884 shares of the company’s stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 4,177 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Danske Bank A S bought a new position in shares of Valley National Bancorp during the third quarter valued at approximately $55,000. 61.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VLY has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. 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 research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Valley National Bancorp from $14.50 to $15.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Hovde Group raised their target price on shares of Valley National Bancorp from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Valley National Bancorp from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Citigroup restated a “buy” rating on shares of Valley National Bancorp in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Valley National Bancorp currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $15.10.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Valley National Bancorp news, COO Russell Barrett sold 90,537 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.54, for a total value of $1,225,870.98. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 64,167 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $868,821.18. This trade represents a 58.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Carlos J. Vazquez purchased 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $13.45 per share, with a total value of $33,625.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 4,252 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $57,189.40. The trade was a 142.69% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 1.06% of the company’s stock.

Valley National Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of VLY opened at $12.93 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $7.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.65 and a beta of 1.04. Valley National Bancorp has a twelve month low of $8.36 and a twelve month high of $14.12. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The company has a 50 day moving average of $12.74 and a two-hundred day moving average of $12.24.

Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The company reported $0.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.27 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $1.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $531.89 million. Valley National Bancorp had a net margin of 18.61% and a return on equity of 8.68%. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.18 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Valley National Bancorp will post 1.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Valley National Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th were issued a $0.11 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 13th. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.4%. Valley National Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.64%.

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.