Vanguard Group Inc. Decreases Stock Holdings in Valero Energy Corporation $VLO

Vanguard Group Inc. cut its stake in Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) by 1.4% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 38,339,116 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 542,106 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 0.12% of Valero Energy worth $5,153,544,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hancock Whitney Corp boosted its holdings in Valero Energy by 8.9% in the 1st quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp now owns 46,474 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $6,138,000 after purchasing an additional 3,790 shares during the last quarter. United Super Pty Ltd in its capacity as Trustee for the Construction & Building Unions Superannuation Fund acquired a new position in Valero Energy in the first quarter valued at approximately $766,000. FORA Capital LLC purchased a new position in Valero Energy in the first quarter worth approximately $866,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its stake in Valero Energy by 11.2% during the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 560,495 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $74,025,000 after acquiring an additional 56,274 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. raised its position in Valero Energy by 8.5% in the second quarter. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. now owns 30,152 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $4,053,000 after purchasing an additional 2,372 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Erste Group Bank assumed coverage on Valero Energy in a report on Monday, November 10th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Piper Sandler increased their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $201.00 to $223.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 14th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Valero Energy in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $177.00 to $197.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 24th. Finally, Bank of America raised Valero Energy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $152.00 to $179.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Valero Energy presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $182.00.

Valero Energy Trading Down 2.8%

Shares of VLO stock opened at $180.23 on Thursday. Valero Energy Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $99.00 and a fifty-two week high of $185.62. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $168.09 and a 200 day moving average price of $148.96. The stock has a market capitalization of $54.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a current ratio of 1.60.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The oil and gas company reported $3.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.15 by $0.51. Valero Energy had a net margin of 1.21% and a return on equity of 8.69%. The company had revenue of $32.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $28.80 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.14 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Valero Energy Corporation will post 7.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 18th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 20th will be issued a $1.13 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 20th. This represents a $4.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 94.36%.

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.