Russell Investments Group Ltd. Trims Stock Position in Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY)

Russell Investments Group Ltd. decreased its position in shares of Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY) by 6.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 946,690 shares of the company’s stock after selling 61,192 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned approximately 0.19% of Valley National Bancorp worth $10,281,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new position in Valley National Bancorp during the 4th quarter worth $35,000. Wolverine Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Valley National Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth about $40,000. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. acquired a new position in Valley National Bancorp in the 3rd quarter valued at about $93,000. Jump Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Valley National Bancorp during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $93,000. Finally, Simplicity Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in Valley National Bancorp during the 4th quarter worth approximately $136,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 61.00% of the company’s stock.

Valley National Bancorp Stock Up 3.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ VLY opened at $7.73 on Monday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $7.71 and its two-hundred day moving average is $8.78. The company has a market capitalization of $3.93 billion, a PE ratio of 9.09 and a beta of 1.10. Valley National Bancorp has a 12-month low of $6.39 and a 12-month high of $11.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 1.00.

Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $0.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.20 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $890.07 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $447.38 million. Valley National Bancorp had a net margin of 12.88% and a return on equity of 7.74%. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.30 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Valley National Bancorp will post 0.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valley National Bancorp Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Thursday, March 14th were paid a $0.11 dividend. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.69%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 13th. Valley National Bancorp’s payout ratio is 51.76%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Valley National Bancorp from $8.50 to $9.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on shares of Valley National Bancorp from $13.00 to $12.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 26th. StockNews.com lowered Valley National Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, February 16th. Wedbush cut their target price on Valley National Bancorp from $9.00 to $8.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price target on Valley National Bancorp from $11.00 to $8.50 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 13th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Valley National Bancorp presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $9.33.

Insider Buying and Selling at Valley National Bancorp

In other Valley National Bancorp news, EVP Joseph Chillura sold 49,715 shares of Valley National Bancorp stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.18, for a total value of $406,668.70. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 545,249 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,460,136.82. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 1.88% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Valley National Bancorp Company 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.