Leeward Investments LLC MA Sells 1,171 Shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Leeward Investments LLC MA reduced its position in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 2.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 43,515 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 1,171 shares during the period. Leeward Investments LLC MA’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $5,657,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cutter & CO Brokerage Inc. grew its holdings in Valero Energy by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Cutter & CO Brokerage Inc. now owns 4,981 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $648,000 after buying an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG grew its holdings in Valero Energy by 5.8% during the 3rd quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 1,005,346 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $142,468,000 after buying an additional 55,351 shares in the last quarter. Stiles Financial Services Inc grew its holdings in Valero Energy by 49.7% during the 4th quarter. Stiles Financial Services Inc now owns 7,615 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $991,000 after buying an additional 2,529 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Valero Energy by 14.0% during the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 2,788,994 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $362,569,000 after buying an additional 342,218 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB grew its holdings in Valero Energy by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 645,726 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $83,867,000 after buying an additional 18,575 shares in the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Valero Energy Price Performance

NYSE:VLO traded down $1.34 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $165.80. The stock had a trading volume of 2,064,894 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,292,117. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $161.07 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $140.61. The stock has a market capitalization of $55.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.70, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.54. Valero Energy Co. has a one year low of $104.18 and a one year high of $184.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.56.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The oil and gas company reported $3.82 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.18 by $0.64. The company had revenue of $31.76 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $32.02 billion. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 31.62% and a net margin of 6.10%. Valero Energy’s quarterly revenue was down 12.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $8.27 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Valero Energy Co. will post 18.31 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Valero Energy from $130.00 to $171.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, March 22nd. Mizuho lowered Valero Energy from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $150.00 to $173.00 in a report on Friday, March 22nd. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Valero Energy from $175.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. Bank of America raised Valero Energy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $156.00 to $210.00 in a report on Friday, March 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Valero Energy from $171.00 to $184.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Valero Energy has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $173.63.

Valero Energy Company Profile

Valero Energy Corporation manufactures, markets, and sells petroleum-based and low-carbon liquid transportation fuels and petrochemical products in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Latin America, Mexico, Peru, and internationally. It operates through three segments: Refining, Renewable Diesel, and Ethanol.