Commonwealth Equity Services LLC Sells 9,683 Shares of Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY)

Commonwealth Equity Services LLC reduced its position in Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY) by 3.5% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 267,496 shares of the company’s stock after selling 9,683 shares during the period. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC’s holdings in Valley National Bancorp were worth $2,424,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in shares of Valley National Bancorp during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Sapient Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Valley National Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth $103,000. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Valley National Bancorp by 12.0% during the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 12,812 shares of the company’s stock valued at $116,000 after purchasing an additional 1,371 shares during the last quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC boosted its position 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 purchasing an additional 1,521 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co purchased a new position in Valley National Bancorp during the 3rd quarter worth $154,000. 61.00% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Valley National Bancorp Trading Down 0.9 %

NASDAQ VLY opened at $9.03 on Thursday. Valley National Bancorp has a 1 year low of $6.47 and a 1 year high of $11.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.98. The company has a market capitalization of $5.06 billion, a PE ratio of 13.09 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a fifty day moving average of $9.59 and a 200 day moving average of $9.50.

Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The company reported $0.13 earnings per share (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 period last year, the firm posted $0.22 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Valley National Bancorp will post 0.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Valley National Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.11 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.87%. Valley National Bancorp’s payout ratio is 63.77%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Joseph Chillura sold 50,000 shares of Valley National Bancorp stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.21, for a total value of $510,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 495,249 shares in the company, valued at $5,056,492.29. The trade was a 9.17 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 1.88% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have commented on VLY. Barclays increased their price target on Valley National Bancorp from $10.00 to $11.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Citigroup boosted 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 report on Monday, January 27th. Piper Sandler upgraded shares of Valley National Bancorp from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $11.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Monday. Royal Bank of Canada lifted 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 note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Valley National Bancorp from $10.50 to $11.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $10.78.

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.