Alliancebernstein L.P. Boosts Stake in Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY)

Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its holdings in shares of Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY) by 32.2% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 1,193,696 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 290,983 shares during the quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P.’s holdings in Valley National Bancorp were worth $10,815,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in VLY. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in Valley National Bancorp in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Sapient Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Valley National Bancorp in the fourth quarter valued at about $103,000. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. boosted its position in Valley National Bancorp by 9.5% during the fourth quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 11,527 shares of the company’s stock worth $104,000 after acquiring an additional 1,002 shares during the last quarter. Financial Engines Advisors L.L.C. acquired a new position in Valley National Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth about $104,000. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC boosted its position in Valley National Bancorp by 12.0% during the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 12,812 shares of the company’s stock worth $116,000 after acquiring an additional 1,371 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 61.00% of the company’s stock.

Valley National Bancorp Stock Up 7.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ:VLY opened at $8.57 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $4.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.42 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.98. Valley National Bancorp has a 1-year low of $6.47 and a 1-year high of $11.10. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $9.24 and a 200 day moving average price of $9.48.

Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The company reported $0.13 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.15 by ($0.02). Valley National Bancorp had a net margin of 10.62% and a return on equity of 5.14%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.22 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Valley National Bancorp will post 0.99 EPS for the current year.

Valley National Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a dividend of $0.11 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.13%. Valley National Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 63.77%.

Insider Transactions at Valley National Bancorp

In other Valley National Bancorp news, EVP Joseph Chillura sold 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.21, for a total transaction of $510,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 495,249 shares in the company, valued at $5,056,492.29. The trade was a 9.17 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.88% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on VLY shares. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Valley National Bancorp from $10.00 to $11.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Valley National Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Valley National Bancorp from $11.00 to $10.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Valley National Bancorp from $10.50 to $11.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on shares of Valley National Bancorp from $11.00 to $12.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Valley National Bancorp presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $10.67.

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.