Basswood Capital’s Matthew Lindenbaum Elected To Hudson Valley Holding Corp. (HVB) Board Of Directors

Matthew Lindenbaum, the manager of Basswood Capital, has gone activist on Hudson Valley Holding Corp. (NYSE:HVB). According to a recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, following a request from Basswood Capital Management, Lindenbaum was elected to Hudson Valley Holding’s board of directors effective March 24, 2014. Basswood Capital and Lindenbaum hold approximately 1.97 million shares, which account for 9.83% of the total number of shares outstanding.

Stephen R. Brown, President and Chief Executive Officer of Hudson Valley Holding Corp. (NYSE:HVB) commented:

As our Company continues to evolve with the changing economy, Matthew’s experience and unique skill set will assist in the further implementation of the company’s strategies and place us in a position for future growth. We are excited to have Matthew join our Board and look forward to working with him.

Joshua Nash, the manager of Ulysses Management, is also bullish on this stock, having created a new position during the 2013 fourth quarter. According  to its latest 13F filing, Ulysses Management holds 350,000 shares valued at $7.12 million. Mario Gabelli is also keeping an eye on Hudson Valley Holding Corp. (NYSE:HVB), as his fund, GAMCO Investors holds 120,000 shares reportedly worth $2,44 million.

A bank holding company, Hudson Valley Holding Corp. (NYSE:HVB) has a market cap of $372 million and pays an annual dividend of $0.24, which represents a yield of 1.3%. The stock is trading at a trailing Price to Earnings (P/E) ratio of 325.xx, significantly above the industry average of 16.90. The forward P/E ratio of 21.85 is a sign that market participants expect the company to get its earnings power back on track. Hudson Valley Holding announced revenues of $23.2 million and earnings per share (EPS) of $0.16 for the 2013 fourth quarter, missing the market expectations. Current quarter is expected to bring revenues of $25 million and EPS of $0.13.

Lindenbaum seems to be a huge fan of financial stocks, with several US financial behemoths occupying the top positions in  Basswood Capital’s equity portfolio. During the previous quarter, Basswood has increased its holding of Synovus Financial Corp. (NYSE:SNV) by 29% to 21.5 million shares valued at $77.5 million. Lindenbaum has also upped his fund’s stake in JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) by 21% to approximately 984,600 shares worth $57.5 million, as reported in the latest 13F report.

Disclosure: none.

Recommended reading:

Billionaire Steven Cohen Initiates Position in Midstates Petroleum Company Inc (MPO); Boosts Stake in Zynga Inc (ZNGA)

Farallon Capital Management Sells 3.51 Mln Shares of Hudson Pacific Properties Inc (HPP)

Hedge Fund News: Phil Falcone, John Paulson & Thomas Kempner