Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Hovde Group Analyst Says

Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY) had its price target upped by investment analysts at Hovde Group from $15.00 to $16.00 in a note issued to investors on Friday. The brokerage currently has an “outperform” rating on the stock. Hovde Group’s target price indicates a potential upside of 16.19% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of Valley National Bancorp from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Piper Sandler assumed coverage on shares of Valley National Bancorp in a report on Monday. They set an “overweight” rating and a $15.50 price objective for the company. TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of Valley National Bancorp from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. National Bank Financial set a $16.00 price target on shares of Valley National Bancorp in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Raymond James Financial upgraded shares of Valley National Bancorp from a “market perform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $15.00 price target for the company in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $14.83.

Valley National Bancorp Trading Up 3.9%

Valley National Bancorp stock opened at $13.77 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $12.66 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $11.94. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The stock has a market cap of $7.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.63 and a beta of 1.03. Valley National Bancorp has a 12 month low of $8.34 and a 12 month high of $14.12.

Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The company reported $0.29 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.27 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $540.36 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $531.89 million. Valley National Bancorp had a return on equity of 7.92% and a net margin of 17.11%.During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.18 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Valley National Bancorp will post 1.25 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Carlos J. Vazquez bought 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $13.45 per share, for a total transaction of $33,625.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 4,252 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $57,189.40. This trade represents a 142.69% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 1.06% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Valley National Bancorp

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VLY. Parallel Advisors LLC increased 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. Ritholtz Wealth Management boosted its holdings in shares of Valley National Bancorp by 5.6% in the 4th quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 16,652 shares of the company’s stock worth $194,000 after acquiring an additional 888 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its holdings in shares of Valley National Bancorp by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 43,940 shares of the company’s stock worth $513,000 after acquiring an additional 918 shares in the last quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC grew its position in Valley National Bancorp by 7.3% during the 4th quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 13,592 shares of the company’s stock worth $159,000 after acquiring an additional 923 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Investment Management Company LLC grew its position in Valley National Bancorp by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Investment Management Company LLC now owns 107,294 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,137,000 after acquiring an additional 951 shares during the last quarter. 61.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting Valley National Bancorp

Here are the key news stories impacting Valley National Bancorp this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 beat on EPS and revenue — VLY reported $0.29 EPS vs. the $0.27 consensus and revenue of $540.4M vs. $531.9M expected, showing improved profitability year-over-year. This is the primary catalyst lifting the stock. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Solid headline metrics — Net income was $163.9M and EPS rose from $0.18 a year ago; reported ROE ~7.9% and net margin ~17.1% underline the earnings improvement. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Research coverage started — Piper Sandler initiated coverage, which can support demand for the stock as fund managers and institutional investors take note. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Investor materials available — The company published an earnings presentation and slide deck and held the conference call, giving investors more detail to assess loan trends, margins and capital. Those materials may confirm the positives or highlight risks. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Wider coverage and previews — Multiple outlets published previews and snapshots ahead of results; these drove attention but contained no new negative surprises. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Liquidity/ratio context and relative returns — Valley’s reported current and quick ratios (~0.97) and a mid-single-digit ROE may concern some investors who prefer stronger liquidity or higher returns; these metrics could limit multiple expansion absent sustained progress. Article Title

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.