Dark Forest Capital Management LP Invests $145,000 in Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY)

Dark Forest Capital Management LP purchased a new position in Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 16,039 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $145,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. grew its stake in Valley National Bancorp by 9.5% in the 4th 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 in the last quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. boosted its stake in shares of Valley National Bancorp by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 44,848 shares of the company’s stock valued at $406,000 after purchasing an additional 1,024 shares in the last quarter. United Services Automobile Association boosted its stake in shares of Valley National Bancorp by 3.7% in the 4th quarter. United Services Automobile Association now owns 28,702 shares of the company’s stock valued at $260,000 after purchasing an additional 1,029 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Valley National Bancorp by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 48,118 shares of the company’s stock valued at $436,000 after purchasing an additional 1,046 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC boosted 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 valued at $116,000 after purchasing an additional 1,371 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 61.00% of the company’s stock.

Valley National Bancorp Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ VLY opened at $8.67 on Wednesday. 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 has a 12 month low of $6.47 and a 12 month high of $11.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.86 billion, a PE ratio of 12.57 and a beta of 1.06. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $8.74 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $9.43.

Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $0.18 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.19 by ($0.01). Valley National Bancorp had a return on equity of 5.14% and a net margin of 10.62%. The company had revenue of $479.67 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $483.98 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.19 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Valley National Bancorp will post 0.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Valley National Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a $0.11 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.07%. Valley National Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 63.77%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on VLY shares. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $12.50 price objective on shares of Valley National Bancorp in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Valley National Bancorp from $10.50 to $11.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Valley National Bancorp from $11.00 to $12.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Valley National Bancorp from $10.00 to $11.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Valley National Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $10.67.

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.