Goldman Sachs Group Inc. Increases Holdings in Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY)

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY) by 6.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,814,048 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 160,854 shares during the quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. owned approximately 0.55% of Valley National Bancorp worth $30,561,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Valley National Bancorp by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 45,427,144 shares of the company’s stock valued at $388,856,000 after purchasing an additional 356,880 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Valley National Bancorp by 5.3% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 24,889,858 shares of the company’s stock worth $270,309,000 after buying an additional 1,257,800 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Valley National Bancorp by 7.6% during the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 13,025,530 shares of the company’s stock worth $111,499,000 after buying an additional 920,140 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Valley National Bancorp by 4.3% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 6,294,793 shares of the company’s stock valued at $68,361,000 after acquiring an additional 259,796 shares during the period. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Valley National Bancorp by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 5,093,370 shares of the company’s stock valued at $55,314,000 after acquiring an additional 161,121 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 61.00% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Joseph Chillura sold 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $7.43, for a total transaction of $185,750.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $74,300. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Joseph Chillura sold 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $7.43, for a total value of $185,750.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $74,300. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Andrew B. Abramson sold 16,451 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $7.72, for a total value of $127,001.72. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 224,679 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,734,521.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 51,451 shares of company stock worth $378,452. 1.88% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Valley National Bancorp Price Performance

VLY opened at $6.58 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $7.29 and its 200 day moving average price is $8.49. Valley National Bancorp has a fifty-two week low of $6.47 and a fifty-two week high of $11.22. The firm has a market cap of $3.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.74 and a beta of 1.10.

Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $0.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.20 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $890.07 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 last year, the firm posted $0.30 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Valley National Bancorp will post 0.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Valley National Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 2nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.11 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 13th. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.69%. Valley National Bancorp’s payout ratio is 51.76%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on VLY shares. Barclays assumed coverage on Valley National Bancorp in a report on Friday, March 8th. They set an “underweight” rating and a $8.00 price target for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $8.00 target price (down previously from $12.00) on shares of Valley National Bancorp in a report on Friday, May 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Valley National Bancorp from $12.00 to $9.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Wedbush reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $8.00 price objective on shares of Valley National Bancorp in a report on Wednesday, May 22nd. Finally, StockNews.com raised Valley National Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $8.89.

About Valley National Bancorp

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.