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The following are today's upgrades for Validea's Low PE Investor model based on the published strategy of John Neff. This strategy looks for firms with persistent earnings growth that trade at a discount relative to their earnings growth and dividend yield.

WESTERN ALLIANCE BANCORPORATION (WAL) is a mid-cap value stock in the Money Center Banks industry. The rating according to our strategy based on John Neff changed from 38% to 77% based on the firm’s underlying fundamentals and the stock’s valuation. A score of 80% or above typically indicates that the strategy has some interest in the stock and a score above 90% typically indicates strong interest.

Company Description: Western Alliance Bancorporation is a bank holding company. The Company provides a full spectrum of customized loan, deposit and treasury management capabilities, including / funds transfer and other digital payment offerings through its wholly owned banking subsidiary, Western Alliance Bank (WAB). WAB operates through five full-service banking divisions: Alliance Bank of Arizona (ABA), Bank of Nevada (BON), Bridge Bank (Bridge), First Independent Bank (FIB), and Torrey Pines Bank (TPB). The Company also provides a range of specialized financial services to business customers across the country, including mortgage banking services through AmeriHome and digital payment services for the class action legal industry. In addition, the Company has two non-bank subsidiaries, CS Insurance Company (CSI) and Western Alliance Trust Company, N.A. (WATC). CSI is a captive insurance company. WATC provides corporate trust services and levered loan administration solutions.

The following table summarizes whether the stock meets each of this strategy's tests. Not all criteria in the below table receive equal weighting or are independent, but the table provides a brief overview of the strong and weak points of the security in the context of the strategy's criteria.

Detailed Analysis of WESTERN ALLIANCE BANCORPORATION

NORWOOD FINANCIAL CORP (NWFL) is a small-cap value stock in the Money Center Banks industry. The rating according to our strategy based on John Neff changed from 60% to 77% based on the firm’s underlying fundamentals and the stock’s valuation. A score of 80% or above typically indicates that the strategy has some interest in the stock and a score above 90% typically indicates strong interest.

Company Description: Norwood Financial Corp is a holding company for Wayne Bank (the Bank). The Bank is an independent community bank with about 14 offices in Northeastern Pennsylvania and 15 offices in Delaware, Sullivan, Ontario, Otsego and Yates Counties, New York. The Bank offers a variety of personal and business credit services and trust and investment products, and real estate settlement services to the consumers, businesses, nonprofit organizations, and municipalities in each of the communities that the Bank serves. The Bank primarily serves the northeastern Pennsylvania counties of Wayne, Pike, Monroe, Lackawanna, and Luzerne and, to a much lesser extent, Susquehanna County in addition to the New York counties of Delaware and others. In addition, it operates automated teller machines at about 29 branch facilities plus one machine at an off-site location. It operates a Wealth Management/Trust Department, which provides estate planning, investment management, and financial planning to customers.

The following table summarizes whether the stock meets each of this strategy's tests. Not all criteria in the below table receive equal weighting or are independent, but the table provides a brief overview of the strong and weak points of the security in the context of the strategy's criteria.

Detailed Analysis of NORWOOD FINANCIAL CORP

SOUTHSTATE CORP (SSB) is a mid-cap value stock in the Money Center Banks industry. The rating according to our strategy based on John Neff changed from 58% to 77% based on the firm’s underlying fundamentals and the stock’s valuation. A score of 80% or above typically indicates that the strategy has some interest in the stock and a score above 90% typically indicates strong interest.

Company Description: SouthState Corporation is a financial holding company. The Company offers a range of banking services and products to its customers through its wholly owned bank subsidiary, South State Bank, National Association (the Bank). The Bank provides consumer, commercial, mortgage and wealth management solutions. The Bank's loan portfolio includes commercial real estate loans, residential real estate loans, commercial and industrial loans, and consumer loans. It also offers its customers a variety of deposit products and services, including checking accounts, savings accounts, other deposit accounts and treasury and merchant services, through multiple channels, including its network of approximately 251 full-service branches and online, mobile and telephone banking platforms. Through Corporate Billing, LLC, the Bank provides factoring, invoicing, collection, and accounts receivable management services to transportation companies and automotive parts and service providers.

The following table summarizes whether the stock meets each of this strategy's tests. Not all criteria in the below table receive equal weighting or are independent, but the table provides a brief overview of the strong and weak points of the security in the context of the strategy's criteria.

Detailed Analysis of SOUTHSTATE CORP

About John Neff: While known as the manager with whom many top managers entrusted their own money, Neff was far from the smooth-talking, high-profile Wall Streeter you might expect. He was mild-mannered and low-key, and the same might be said of the Windsor Fund that he managed for more than three decades. In fact, Neff himself described the fund as "relatively prosaic, dull, [and] conservative." There was nothing dull about his results, however. From 1964 to 1995, Neff guided Windsor to a 13.7 percent average annual return, easily outpacing the S&P 500's 10.6 percent return during that time. That 3.1 percentage point difference is huge over time -- a $10,000 investment in Windsor (with dividends reinvested) at the start of Neff's tenure would have ended up as more than $564,000 by the time he retired, more than twice what the same investment in the S&P would have yielded (about $233,000). Considering the length of his tenure, that track record may be the best ever for a manager of such a large fund.

About Validea: Validea is aninvestment researchservice that follows the published strategies of investment legends. Validea offers both stock analysis and model portfolios based on gurus who have outperformed the market over the long-term, including Warren Buffett, Benjamin Graham, Peter Lynch and Martin Zweig. For more information about Validea, click here

The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.