Zacks Value Investor Highlights: Truist Financial, First Merchants, Valley National, Simmons First National and Prosperity Bancshares

For Immediate ReleaseChicago, IL – November 24, 2024 – Zacks Value Investor is a podcast hosted weekly by Zacks Stock Strategist Tracey Ryniec. Every week, Tracey will be joined by guests to discuss the hottest investing topics in stocks, bonds and ETFs and how it impacts your life. To listen to the podcast, click here: https://www.zacks.com/stock/news/2794441/5-of-the-cheapest-bank-stocks-for-20265 of the Cheapest Bank Stocks for 2026Welcome to Episode #423 of the Value Investor Podcast.> (0:30) - Where Should Value Investors Be Looking Right Now?(9:00) - Top Stocks To Keep On Your Radar(27:50) - Episode Roundup: TFC, FRME, VLY, SFNC, PB Every week, Tracey Ryniec, the editor of Zacks Value Investor portfolio, shares some of her top value investing tips and stock picks.With growth stocks still dominating in 2025, value investors are wondering, where do they find good quality value stocks for 2026? Are there any?There are always industries that are out of favor, such as energy. But the key is to find an out-of-favor industry which also has rising earnings estimates. Value investors still want to see earnings growth.And if you’re looking for earnings growth, energy is not the place to be.But there’s a second out-of-favor industry that investors shouldn’t dismiss: the banks.How to Find Value in a BankWhen looking for cheap banks, investors can’t simply use the price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio. It doesn’t tell the whole picture with banks.Bank analysts use the price-to-book (P/B) ratio instead. Bank analysts often say that investors should buy a bank when the P/B ratio is 1.0 and sell when it is 2.0.Tracey ran a screen with the banks and a P/B ratio under 2.0. There were hundreds of “cheap” banks with one bank having a P/B ratio as low as 0.09.We Love the Big Banks but Hate the Small BanksI know you’re thinking that JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America have both broken out to new all-time highs in 2025. How can they be “hated” or out of favor?The mega-cap banks are back in favor but, after the 2025 rallies, they aren’t cheap. JPMorgan Chase now trades with a P/B ratio of 2.4, which is well above the “sell at 2.0” recommendation by bank analysts.That’s why value investors should look to regional banks and even community banks to find real value.Wall Street is ignoring this group of stocks. Investors should not.5 of the Cheapest Bank Stocks for 20261. Truist Financial Corp. TFCTruist Financial is one of the bigger banks to make this screen. Headquartered in Charlotte, it’s a top 10 US commercial bank which also does investment banking and wealth management. Truist has a market cap of $56.7 billion.Earnings are expected to rise 6.5% in 2025 and another 13.2% in 2026. Truist is shareholder friendly and pays a dividend yielding 4.7%.Truist is cheap, with a P/B ratio of just 0.95.Should Truist be on your 2026 short list?2. First Merchants Corp. FRMEFirst Merchants is a central Indiana bank with 111 banking centers in Indiana, Michigan, and Ohio. It has a market cap of $2 billion, so that makes it a small bank.First Merchants is expected to grow earnings by 11.5% in 2025 and another 7% in 2026. It is a Zacks Rank #2 (Strong Buy) stock.First Merchants is shareholder friendly and is paying a dividend yielding 4.1%.Should a Midwest bank like First Merchants be on your short list?3. Valley National Bancorp VLYValley National Bancorp is the holding company of Valley National Bank. Headquartered in New Jersey, Valley National Bancorp has operations in New York, Florida, Alabama, California, and Illinois. It’s a mid-cap bank with a market cap of $5.8 billion.Earnings for Valley National Bancorp are expected to soar 54.8% this year and another 28.1% in 2026. It has a P/B ratio of just 0.8. That makes it a cheap bank with big growth.Valley National Bancorp is a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) stock.Should a Northeast bank like Valley National Bancorp be on your short list?4. Simmons First National Corp. SFNCSimmons First National was founded in 1903 and is headquartered in Arkansas. Simmons First National is extremely proud that it has returned capital to shareholders through cash dividends for 116 consecutive years. It has a market cap of $2.5 billion, with 220 branches in Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, Tennessee, and Texas.Simmons First National’s dividend is now yielding a juicy 4.9%.Earnings are expected to jump 19.9% this year and another 13.6% next year. Simmons First National is also dirt cheap, with a P/B ratio of 0.75.Should a Southern bank like Simmons First National be on your short list?5. Prosperity Bancshares, Inc. PBProsperity Bancshares is headquartered in Houston, TX and has 284 locations in Texas and Oklahoma. It’s a larger bank with a market cap of $6.2 billion.Earnings are expected to jump 11.2% in 2025 and another 9.3% in 2026. It’s cheap. Prosperity has a P/B ratio of only 0.8.Prosperity is also shareholder friendly. It pays a dividend currently yielding 3.5%.Should a Texas bank like Prosperity Bancshares be on your short list?What Else Should You Know About the Smaller Banks?Tune into this week’s podcast to find out.Free: Instant Access to Zacks' Market-Crushing StrategiesSince 2000, our top stock-picking strategies have blown away the S&P's +7.7% average gain per year. Amazingly, they soared with average gains of +48.4%, +50.2% and +56.7% per year.Today you can tap into those powerful strategies – and the high-potential stocks they uncover – free. No strings attached.Get all the details here >>Tracey Ryniec is the Value Stock Strategist for Zacks.com. She is also the Editor of the Insider Trader and Value Investor services. You can follow her on twitter at @TraceyRyniec and she also hosts the Zacks Market Edge Podcast on iTunes.About ZacksZacks.com is a property of Zacks Investment Research, Inc., which was formed in 1978. The later formation of the Zacks Rank, a proprietary stock picking system; continues to outperform the market by nearly a 3 to 1 margin. 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Inherent in any investment is the potential for loss.This material is being provided for informational purposes only and nothing herein constitutes investment, legal, accounting or tax advice, or a recommendation to buy, sell or hold a security. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. It should not be assumed that any investments in securities, companies, sectors or markets identified and described were or will be profitable. All information is current as of the date of herein and is subject to change without notice. Any views or opinions expressed may not reflect those of the firm as a whole. Zacks Investment Research does not engage in investment banking, market making or asset management activities of any securities. These returns are from hypothetical portfolios consisting of stocks with Zacks Rank = 1 that were rebalanced monthly with zero transaction costs. These are not the returns of actual portfolios of stocks. The S&P 500 is an unmanaged index. Visit https://www.zacks.com/performance for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release.5 Stocks Set to DoubleEach was handpicked by a Zacks expert as the favorite stock to gain +100% or more in the months ahead. They includeStock #1: A Disruptive Force with Notable Growth and ResilienceStock #2: Bullish Signs Signaling to Buy the DipStock #3: One of the Most Compelling Investments in the MarketStock #4: Leader In a Red-Hot Industry Poised for GrowthStock #5: Modern Omni-Channel Platform Coiled to SpringMost of the stocks in this report are flying under Wall Street radar, which provides a great opportunity to get in on the ground floor. While not all picks can be winners, previous recommendations have soared +171%, +209% and +232%.Download Atomic Opportunity: Nuclear Energy's Comeback free today.Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report First Merchants Corporation (FRME): Free Stock Analysis Report Prosperity Bancshares, Inc. (PB): Free Stock Analysis Report Simmons First National Corporation (SFNC): Free Stock Analysis Report Valley National Bancorp (VLY): Free Stock Analysis Report Truist Financial Corporation (TFC): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).Zacks Investment ResearchWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks