Why Valley National Bank (VLY) Stock Is Up Today

The end of an earnings season can be a great time to discover new stocks and assess how companies are handling the current business environment. Let’s take a look at how QCR Holdings and the rest of the regional banks stocks fared in Q2.

Regional banks, financial institutions operating within specific geographic areas, serve as intermediaries between local depositors and borrowers. They benefit from rising interest rates that improve net interest margins (the difference between loan yields and deposit costs), digital transformation reducing operational expenses, and local economic growth driving loan demand. However, these banks face headwinds from fintech competition, deposit outflows to higher-yielding alternatives, credit deterioration (increasing loan defaults) during economic slowdowns, and regulatory compliance costs. Recent concerns about regional bank stability following high-profile failures and significant commercial real estate exposure present additional challenges.

The 78 regional banks stocks we track reported a satisfactory Q2. As a group, revenues were in line with analysts’ consensus estimates.

Amidst this news, share prices of the companies have had a rough stretch. On average, they are down 5.9% since the latest earnings results.

QCR Holdings

With roots dating back to 1993 and a name reflecting its original Quad Cities market, QCR Holdings (NASDAQGM:QCRH) operates four community banks across Iowa and Missouri, providing commercial, consumer banking, and trust services to businesses and individuals.

QCR Holdings reported revenues of $84.2 million, down 10.2% year on year. This print fell short of analysts’ expectations by 1.2%. Overall, it was a mixed quarter for the company with a decent beat of analysts’ EPS estimates but net interest income in line with analysts’ estimates.

“We delivered strong second quarter results highlighted by a significant increase in net interest income from the previous quarter, driven by both net interest margin expansion and strong loan growth, as well as improved capital markets revenue, and disciplined noninterest expense management,” said Todd Gipple, President and Chief Executive Officer.

Unsurprisingly, the stock is down 7.3% since reporting and currently trades at $69.91.

Is now the time to buy QCR Holdings? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it’s free.

Best Q2: Seacoast Banking

Founded during the Florida land boom of 1926 and surviving the Great Depression, Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida is a financial holding company that provides commercial and retail banking, wealth management, and mortgage services throughout Florida.

Seacoast Banking reported revenues of $151.4 million, up 19.6% year on year, outperforming analysts’ expectations by 5%. The business had a stunning quarter with a solid beat of analysts’ EPS estimates and an impressive beat of analysts’ net interest income estimates.

Although it had a fine quarter compared its peers, the market seems unhappy with the results as the stock is down 5% since reporting. It currently trades at $27.43.

Is now the time to buy Seacoast Banking? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it’s free.

Weakest Q2: Coastal Financial

Pioneering the intersection of traditional banking and financial technology in the Pacific Northwest, Coastal Financial operates as a bank holding company that provides traditional banking services and Banking-as-a-Service (BaaS) solutions to consumers and businesses.

Coastal Financial reported revenues of $119.4 million, down 11.7% year on year, falling short of analysts’ expectations by 21.5%. It was a disappointing quarter as it posted a significant miss of analysts’ net interest income estimates and a significant miss of analysts’ EPS estimates.

As expected, the stock is down 7.7% since the results and currently trades at $93.59.

Read our full analysis of Coastal Financial’s results here.

Valley National Bank

Tracing its roots back to 1927 during the economic boom before the Great Depression, Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQGS:VLY) operates Valley National Bank, providing commercial, consumer, and wealth management banking services across several states.

Valley National Bank reported revenues of $495 million, up 9% year on year. This print topped analysts’ expectations by 0.5%. Aside from that, it was a mixed quarter as it also logged a decent beat of analysts’ EPS estimates but net interest income in line with analysts’ estimates.

The stock is down 5.3% since reporting and currently trades at $9.19.

Read our full, actionable report on Valley National Bank here, it’s free.

Cadence Bank

With roots dating back to 1885 and a strategic focus on middle-market commercial lending, Cadence Bancorporation is a bank holding company that provides commercial banking, retail banking, and wealth management services to middle-market businesses and individuals.

Cadence Bank reported revenues of $476.3 million, up 7.6% year on year. This number beat analysts’ expectations by 1.6%. It was a satisfactory quarter as it also produced a narrow beat of analysts’ tangible book value per share estimates.

The stock is down 5.6% since reporting and currently trades at $33.95.

Read our full, actionable report on Cadence Bank here, it’s free.

Market Update

Thanks to the Fed’s series of rate hikes in 2022 and 2023, inflation has cooled significantly from its post-pandemic highs, drawing closer to the 2% goal. This disinflation has occurred without severely impacting economic growth, suggesting the success of a soft landing. The stock market thrived in 2024, spurred by recent rate cuts (0.5% in September and 0.25% in November), and a notable surge followed Donald Trump’s presidential election win in November, propelling indices to historic highs. Nonetheless, the outlook for 2025 remains clouded by potential trade policy changes and corporate tax discussions, which could impact business confidence and growth. The path forward holds both optimism and caution as new policies take shape.

What Happened?

A number of stocks fell in the morning session after a surprisingly weak July jobs report and the announcement of sweeping new tariffs fueled fears of an economic slowdown and an impending interest rate cut.

The U.S. economy added just 73,000 jobs in July, the weakest gain in over two years, while the unemployment rate rose to 4.2%. This dismal data significantly increased market expectations for a Federal Reserve interest rate cut, with traders now pricing in an 80% probability of a cut in September. Lower interest rates typically harm bank profitability by compressing their net interest margins—the difference between what they earn on loans and pay on deposits. Compounding these worries, the announcement of new tariffs on imports from 92 countries has sparked fears of a global trade war, which could further dampen economic growth and disrupt supply chains, creating a challenging environment for the banking industry.

The stock market overreacts to news, and big price drops can present good opportunities to buy high-quality stocks.

Among others, the following stocks were impacted:

• Regional Banks company Provident Financial Services fell 3.3%. Is now the time to buy Provident Financial Services? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free.
• Regional Banks company Western Alliance Bancorporation fell 3.2%. Is now the time to buy Western Alliance Bancorporation? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free.
• Regional Banks company Veritex Holdings fell 3.1%. Is now the time to buy Veritex Holdings? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free.
• Regional Banks company Valley National Bank fell 3.5%. Is now the time to buy Valley National Bank? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free.
• Regional Banks company United Community Banks fell 3.2%. Is now the time to buy United Community Banks? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free.

Zooming In On Valley National Bank (VLY)

Valley National Bank’s shares are not very volatile and have only had 7 moves greater than 5% over the last year. In that context, today’s move indicates the market considers this news meaningful, although it might not be something that would fundamentally change its perception of the business.

Valley National Bank is up 2.6% since the beginning of the year, but at $9.16 per share, it is still trading 15% below its 52-week high of $10.78 from November 2024. Investors who bought $1,000 worth of Valley National Bank’s shares 5 years ago would now be looking at an investment worth $1,233.

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