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BAC or VLY or WFC
Which Stock Would AI Choose? Bank of America (BAC) vs. Valley National Bancorp (VLY) vs. Wells Fargo (WFC) Stock Comparison
Key Takeaways
- BAC demonstrates relative stability among the three, with YTD declines less severe than WFC, supported by expectations of 7-9% net interest income growth and diversified revenue streams.
- VLY shows stronger recent momentum with positive YTD performance around 1-2%, driven by Q4 earnings beats, loan growth, and a new share repurchase program.
- All three stocks have faced pressure in recent weeks amid interest rate concerns and sector selloffs, with monthly declines ranging from 11-15%.
- WFC anticipates robust EPS growth of over 20% in upcoming reports but trades with higher YTD losses near 20%, reflecting mortgage exposure and restructuring costs.
- Regional bank VLY offers higher one-year returns around 33-35%, contrasting with the megabanks' scale advantages in capital markets.
- Valuations remain attractive across the board, with P/E ratios in the 11-13 range, amid broader banking sector sensitivity to economic shifts.
Introduction
This comparison examines BAC, VLY, and WFC—representing a mix of megabank scale and regional focus—amid a challenging market environment marked by interest rate volatility and geopolitical tensions. Investors seeking exposure to banking through diversified giants versus growth-oriented regionals, or traders eyeing relative performance in net interest margins and fee income, will find value in understanding their business models, recent momentum, and positioning. With all three showing resilience in longer-term returns despite short-term dips, this analysis highlights contrasts in stability, growth drivers, and risk profiles for informed stock comparison decisions.
BAC Overview and Recent Performance
Bank of America (BAC) is a global financial powerhouse with $3.4 trillion in assets, offering consumer banking, wealth management, investment banking, and capital markets services across thousands of branches. In recent market activity, shares have hovered around $46-47, reflecting YTD declines of approximately 14% but one-year gains near 20-22%, outperforming the S&P 500 in longer horizons. Sentiment has been tempered by interest rate concerns and private credit market worries, contributing to monthly drops around 11%. Key positives include projections for Q1 EPS of $0.98 (up 8.9% year-over-year), a 7% rise in net interest income, and growth in capital markets and digital engagement. These factors have supported steady performance relative to peers, though broader sector pressures persist.
VLY Overview and Recent Performance
Valley National Bancorp (VLY) operates as a regional bank holding company with about $62 billion in assets, concentrating on commercial lending, retail banking, and wealth management in the Northeast, Florida, and select Western markets. Recent weeks have seen shares trade near $11.76, with modest YTD gains of 1-2% and robust one-year returns exceeding 33%, alongside a 29% three-month rally earlier in the period. Performance has been bolstered by Q4 2025 earnings beats, higher net interest income, fee growth, and core deposit increases nearing $4 billion. A new 25 million share repurchase authorization through 2028 and stable dividends further enhance sentiment. However, regional exposure and commercial real estate concentrations introduce volatility amid economic shifts.
WFC Overview and Recent Performance
Wells Fargo (WFC) manages $2 trillion in assets, emphasizing consumer banking, mortgages, commercial lending, and wealth services primarily in the U.S. Shares have recently traded around $74, posting steeper YTD losses near 20% and monthly declines of about 15%, underperforming the sector amid restructuring expenses and mortgage sensitivities. Longer-term, one-year returns stand at 4-6%, with five-year gains reflecting recovery post-regulatory hurdles. Upcoming earnings are expected to show EPS of $1.56, up 22.8% year-over-year, supported by net interest income expansion and asset cap relief enabling growth. Capital markets strength and efficiency initiatives have influenced positive analyst revisions, balancing recent pressures from rate cuts and market rotations.
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Head-to-Head Comparison
BAC and WFC leverage megabank scale for diversified revenue—capital markets and global operations for BAC, consumer/mortgage focus for WFC—contrasting VLY's regional commercial lending emphasis. Growth drivers differ: VLY benefits from nimble loan expansion and buybacks, while megabanks eye fee income and NII stabilization post-rate cuts. Recent momentum favors VLY's positive YTD versus peers' declines, but risks skew higher for the regional due to CRE exposure versus diversified buffers. Valuation sensitivity is similar at 11-13 P/E, with BAC less volatile. Market sentiment tilts toward stability in megabanks amid uncertainty, trading off VLY's upside potential against concentration risks.
Tickeron AI Verdict
Tickeron’s AI currently favors BAC among the trio, owing to superior trend consistency from diversified revenue, stronger NII outlook, and relatively milder YTD drawdown versus WFC. While VLY exhibits short-term momentum, BAC's scale and capital markets catalysts position it for higher probability of outperformance in stabilizing conditions.
Disclaimer
The information on this webpage is provided for general informational and educational purposes only and is not intended as investment advice, a recommendation to purchase or sell any security, or an offer or solicitation related to investments. It does not consider your personal financial situation, goals, or risk profile, and all investing carries inherent risks, including the possibility of losing your entire investment. For more details, please review our full disclaimer. Disclaimers and Limitations
Long-Term Analysis
It is best to consider a long-term outlook for a ticker by using Fundamental Analysis (FA) ratings. The rating of 1 to 100, where 1 is best and 100 is worst, is divided into thirds. The first third (a green rating of 1-33) indicates that the ticker is undervalued; the second third (a grey number between 34 and 66) means that the ticker is valued fairly; and the last third (red number of 67 to 100) reflects that the ticker is undervalued. We use an FA Score to show how many ratings show the ticker to be undervalued (green) or overvalued (red).
BAC’s FA Score shows that 1 FA rating(s) are green whileVLY’s FA Score has 1 green FA rating(s), and WFC’s FA Score reflects 2 green FA rating(s).
- BAC’s FA Score: 1 green, 4 red.
- VLY’s FA Score: 1 green, 4 red.
- WFC’s FA Score: 2 green, 3 red.
Short-Term Analysis
It is best to consider a short-term outlook for a ticker by using Technical Analysis (TA) indicators. We use Odds of Success as the percentage of outcomes which confirm successful trade signals in the past.
If the Odds of Success (the likelihood of the continuation of a trend) for each indicator are greater than 50%, then the generated signal is confirmed. A green percentage from 90% to 51% indicates that the ticker is in a bullish trend. A red percentage from 90% - 51% indicates that the ticker is in a bearish trend. All grey percentages are below 50% and are considered not to confirm the trend signal.
BAC’s TA Score shows that 4 TA indicator(s) are bullish while VLY’s TA Score has 4 bullish TA indicator(s), and WFC’s TA Score reflects 4 bullish TA indicator(s).
- BAC’s TA Score: 4 bullish, 5 bearish.
- VLY’s TA Score: 4 bullish, 6 bearish.
- WFC’s TA Score: 4 bullish, 6 bearish.
Price Growth
BAC (@Major Banks) experienced а +6.74% price change this week, while VLY (@Regional Banks) price change was +6.68% , and WFC (@Major Banks) price fluctuated +6.72% for the same time period.
The average weekly price growth across all stocks in the @Major Banks industry was +3.44%. For the same industry, the average monthly price growth was +3.14%, and the average quarterly price growth was +19.90%.
The average weekly price growth across all stocks in the @Regional Banks industry was +2.92%. For the same industry, the average monthly price growth was +5.67%, and the average quarterly price growth was +19.36%.
Reported Earning Dates
BAC is expected to report earnings on Apr 15, 2026.
VLY is expected to report earnings on Apr 23, 2026.
WFC is expected to report earnings on Apr 14, 2026.
Industries' Descriptions
@Major Banks (+3.44% weekly)Major banks are among the biggest companies in the world, often times with global reach and market capitalizations in the multi-billions. Large banks often have multiple arms spanning different disciplines, from deposits, to investment banking, to wealth management and insurance. The biggest banks often have key competitive advantages over smaller players in the industry in terms of brand recognition, cost of capital, and efficiency. Think J.P. Morgan, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, and Citigroup.
@Regional Banks (+2.92% weekly)Regional banks have a smaller reach than major banks, and cater mostly to one region of a country, such as a state or within a group of states. They offer services often similar – albeit with some limitations/smaller scale – compared to major banks. Taking deposits, making loans, mortgages, leases, credit cards , fund management, insurance and investment banking. SunTrust Banks, State Street Corp., M&T Bank Corp. are some examples of U.S. regional banks.
| BAC | VLY | WFC | |
| Capitalization | 377B | 7.35B | 265B |
| EBITDA | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Gain YTD | -3.622 | 14.504 | -7.250 |
| P/E Ratio | 13.83 | 13.12 | 13.74 |
| Revenue | 113B | 2.03B | 83.7B |
| Total Cash | 25.4B | 376M | 34.8B |
| Total Debt | 366B | 3.34B | 193B |
BAC | VLY | WFC | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
OUTLOOK RATING 1..100 | 30 | 22 | 21 | |
VALUATION overvalued / fair valued / undervalued 1..100 | 70 Overvalued | 47 Fair valued | 81 Overvalued | |
PROFIT vs RISK RATING 1..100 | 50 | 79 | 19 | |
SMR RATING 1..100 | 1 | 11 | 2 | |
PRICE GROWTH RATING 1..100 | 47 | 42 | 49 | |
P/E GROWTH RATING 1..100 | 39 | 53 | 47 | |
SEASONALITY SCORE 1..100 | 50 | 50 | 50 |
Tickeron ratings are formulated such that a rating of 1 designates the most successful stocks in a given industry, while a rating of 100 points to the least successful stocks for that industry.
VLY's Valuation (47) in the Regional Banks industry is in the same range as BAC (70) in the Major Banks industry, and is somewhat better than the same rating for WFC (81) in the Major Banks industry. This means that VLY's stock grew similarly to BAC’s and somewhat faster than WFC’s over the last 12 months.
WFC's Profit vs Risk Rating (19) in the Major Banks industry is in the same range as BAC (50) in the Major Banks industry, and is somewhat better than the same rating for VLY (79) in the Regional Banks industry. This means that WFC's stock grew similarly to BAC’s and somewhat faster than VLY’s over the last 12 months.
BAC's SMR Rating (1) in the Major Banks industry is in the same range as WFC (2) in the Major Banks industry, and is in the same range as VLY (11) in the Regional Banks industry. This means that BAC's stock grew similarly to WFC’s and similarly to VLY’s over the last 12 months.
VLY's Price Growth Rating (42) in the Regional Banks industry is in the same range as BAC (47) in the Major Banks industry, and is in the same range as WFC (49) in the Major Banks industry. This means that VLY's stock grew similarly to BAC’s and similarly to WFC’s over the last 12 months.
BAC's P/E Growth Rating (39) in the Major Banks industry is in the same range as WFC (47) in the Major Banks industry, and is in the same range as VLY (53) in the Regional Banks industry. This means that BAC's stock grew similarly to WFC’s and similarly to VLY’s over the last 12 months.
| BAC | VLY | WFC | |
|---|---|---|---|
| RSI ODDS (%) | 1 day ago 68% | 1 day ago 62% | 1 day ago 52% |
| Stochastic ODDS (%) | 1 day ago 58% | 1 day ago 71% | 1 day ago 64% |
| Momentum ODDS (%) | 1 day ago 66% | 1 day ago 72% | 1 day ago 71% |
| MACD ODDS (%) | 1 day ago 62% | 1 day ago 64% | 1 day ago 61% |
| TrendWeek ODDS (%) | 1 day ago 63% | 1 day ago 64% | 1 day ago 64% |
| TrendMonth ODDS (%) | 1 day ago 58% | 1 day ago 62% | 1 day ago 56% |
| Advances ODDS (%) | 1 day ago 61% | 1 day ago 62% | 1 day ago 62% |
| Declines ODDS (%) | 14 days ago 62% | 11 days ago 69% | 11 days ago 59% |
| BollingerBands ODDS (%) | 1 day ago 62% | 1 day ago 73% | 1 day ago 53% |
| Aroon ODDS (%) | 1 day ago 55% | 1 day ago 69% | 1 day ago 71% |
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BAC and
Correlation & Price change
A.I.dvisor indicates that over the last year, BAC has been closely correlated with WFC. These tickers have moved in lockstep 87% of the time. This A.I.-generated data suggests there is a high statistical probability that if BAC jumps, then WFC could also see price increases.
VLY and
Correlation & Price change
A.I.dvisor indicates that over the last year, VLY has been closely correlated with FNB. These tickers have moved in lockstep 89% of the time. This A.I.-generated data suggests there is a high statistical probability that if VLY jumps, then FNB could also see price increases.
| Ticker / NAME | Correlation To VLY | 1D Price Change % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| VLY | 100% | +2.24% | ||
| FNB - VLY | 89% Closely correlated | +1.70% | ||
| ASB - VLY | 88% Closely correlated | +1.54% | ||
| WTFC - VLY | 87% Closely correlated | +1.35% | ||
| INDB - VLY | 87% Closely correlated | +1.40% | ||
| UBSI - VLY | 87% Closely correlated | +2.25% | ||
More | ||||
WFC and
Correlation & Price change
A.I.dvisor indicates that over the last year, WFC has been closely correlated with BAC. These tickers have moved in lockstep 87% of the time. This A.I.-generated data suggests there is a high statistical probability that if WFC jumps, then BAC could also see price increases.