Adds analyst comment in paragraph 4

By Arasu Kannagi Basil and Pritam Biswas

Feb 7 (Reuters) - Private equity-backed Northpointe Bancshares said on Friday it was targeting a valuation of up to $594.8 million in its New York initial public offering, set to be one of the biggest U.S. bank listings in a decade.

The Grand Rapids, Michigan-based community bank is offering 7.4 million shares, while some existing shareholders are selling 1.5 million shares, priced between $16 and $18 each, to raise a total of up to $159 million in 2025's first U.S. bank flotation.

Bank stocks have rallied after U.S. President Donald Trump's election victory, on hopes that the sector is poised to benefit in a more sanguine regulatory environment, with analysts suggesting that 2025 could be a new "Goldilocks" period for the industry.

"Now that we've put some distance between us and the regional banking crisis of 2023, I expect we'll see a few more banking IPOs, particularly if Northpointe does well," said Matt Kennedy, senior strategist at Renaissance Capital, which provides pre-IPO research and IPO-focused ETFs.

Buyout firm Castle Creek Capital, which invests in community banks, paid $25 million in 2019 for a 27% stake in Northpointe. It is the bank's largest shareholder, with a roughly 33% stake.

Sterling Bancorp's SBT.O $207 million listing is the biggest New York IPO by a U.S. bank since 2017, according to data compiled by LSEG.

Northpointe, which has $5.4 billion in assets, was founded in 1999 by Charles Williams as a mortgage-focused lender mainly operating in the Midwestern states of Michigan, Ohio and Indiana. It has since expanded and now offers home loans and retail banking products across the United States.

Since 2018, Northpointe has raised over $38 million in common equity and $220 million of preferred equity and debt.

The bank will list on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol "NPB".

Keefe, Bruyette & Woods, Piper Sandler and Janney Montgomery Scott are the underwriters.

(Reporting by Arasu Kannagi Basil and Pritam Biswas in Bengaluru; Editing by Pooja Desai, Tasim Zahid and Leroy Leo)

((ArasuKannagi.Basil@thomsonreuters.com;))