Financial Engines Advisors L.L.C. Invests $104,000 in Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY)

Financial Engines Advisors L.L.C. bought a new stake in shares of Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 11,482 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $104,000.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of VLY. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Valley National Bancorp during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Sapient Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Valley National Bancorp during the fourth quarter valued at $103,000. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. lifted 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 valued at $104,000 after purchasing an additional 1,002 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC grew its stake in shares of Valley National Bancorp by 12.0% in the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 12,812 shares of the company’s stock worth $116,000 after buying an additional 1,371 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Townsquare Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Valley National Bancorp by 11.8% in the 3rd quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 14,365 shares of the company’s stock worth $130,000 after buying an additional 1,521 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 61.00% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently commented on VLY. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $12.50 price target on shares of Valley National Bancorp in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Valley National Bancorp from $10.50 to $11.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Citigroup increased their price target on Valley National Bancorp from $10.00 to $11.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Valley National Bancorp from $10.00 to $11.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Valley National Bancorp from $11.00 to $12.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Valley National Bancorp currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $10.78.

Insider Transactions at Valley National Bancorp

In other news, EVP Joseph Chillura sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.21, for a total value of $510,500.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 495,249 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,056,492.29. This trade represents a 9.17 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.88% of the company’s stock.

Valley National Bancorp Stock Performance

VLY stock opened at $8.78 on Friday. 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 business has a 50-day moving average price of $9.56 and a 200 day moving average price of $9.50. The company has a market capitalization of $4.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.72 and a beta of 1.11.

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

Valley National Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $0.11 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.01%. Valley National Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is presently 63.77%.

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.