Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board Sells 30,902 Shares of Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY)

Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board trimmed its holdings in shares of Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY - Free Report) by 57.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 23,229 shares of the company's stock after selling 30,902 shares during the quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board's holdings in Valley National Bancorp were worth $210,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Valley National Bancorp in the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. CreativeOne Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Valley National Bancorp in the 4th quarter worth approximately $102,000. Sapient Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Valley National Bancorp in the 4th quarter valued at $103,000. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. increased its position in shares of 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 buying an additional 1,002 shares during the period. Finally, Financial Engines Advisors L.L.C. bought a new position in Valley National Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth $104,000. 61.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on VLY. Barclays decreased their price target on Valley National Bancorp from $11.00 to $10.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Valley National Bancorp from $11.00 to $12.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Valley National Bancorp from $10.00 to $11.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Valley National Bancorp from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, April 12th. Finally, Stephens restated an "overweight" rating and set a $12.50 price objective on shares of Valley National Bancorp in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Valley National Bancorp currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $10.67.

Valley National Bancorp Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of VLY traded up $0.03 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $8.25. 6,777,023 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,086,482. Valley National Bancorp has a 52 week low of $6.47 and a 52 week high of $11.10. The company has a market cap of $4.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.96 and a beta of 1.06. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $8.94 and a 200 day simple moving average of $9.45. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46.

Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The company reported $0.13 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates 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 period in the previous year, the company posted $0.22 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Valley National Bancorp will post 0.99 EPS for the current year.

Valley National Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a $0.11 dividend. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.33%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. Valley National Bancorp's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 63.77%.

Insider Activity at Valley National Bancorp

In related news, EVP Joseph Chillura sold 50,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.21, for a total value of $510,500.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 495,249 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,056,492.29. This represents a 9.17 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 1.43% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.