Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY) Price Target Raised to $16.00

Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY) had its target price hoisted by Morgan Stanley from $14.00 to $16.00 in a research note released on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an overweight rating on the stock.

A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on VLY. National Bank Financial set a $16.00 price target on shares of Valley National Bancorp in a report on Friday, January 30th. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Valley National Bancorp in a report on Monday, December 15th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $15.00 target price on the stock. Hovde Group boosted their target price on shares of Valley National Bancorp from $14.00 to $15.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Barclays raised their price target on Valley National Bancorp from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on Valley National Bancorp from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Valley National Bancorp presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $14.40.

Valley National Bancorp Stock Performance

VLY stock opened at $12.58 on Monday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $12.55 and its 200 day simple moving average is $11.46. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. Valley National Bancorp has a 12-month low of $7.48 and a 12-month high of $13.87. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.99 billion, a PE ratio of 12.46 and a beta of 1.07.

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

Valley National Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be given a $0.11 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.5%. Valley National Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is presently 43.56%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Valley National Bancorp

In related news, Director Carlos J. Vazquez acquired 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $13.45 per share, with a total value of $33,625.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 4,252 shares in the company, valued at approximately $57,189.40. This represents a 142.69% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 1.43% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Valley National Bancorp

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Azora Capital LP purchased a new stake in shares of Valley National Bancorp in the third quarter worth $103,120,000. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its stake in shares of Valley National Bancorp by 1,013.8% during the 4th quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 6,831,049 shares of the company’s stock valued at $79,787,000 after buying an additional 6,217,716 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Valley National Bancorp in the 4th quarter worth $71,554,000. UBS Group AG increased its stake in Valley National Bancorp by 404.7% in the 3rd quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 5,867,611 shares of the company’s stock worth $62,197,000 after buying an additional 4,704,971 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Squarepoint Ops LLC increased its stake in Valley National Bancorp by 260.8% in the 4th quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 5,239,435 shares of the company’s stock worth $61,197,000 after buying an additional 3,787,203 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 61.00% of the company’s stock.

About Valley National Bancorp

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.