Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) Shares Gap Down – Should You Sell?

Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLOGet Free Report) gapped down before the market opened on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $258.67, but opened at $244.70. Valero Energy shares last traded at $242.5660, with a volume of 421,294 shares.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Mizuho boosted their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $222.00 to $289.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $220.00 to $292.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $178.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Raymond James Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $215.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 25th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $203.00 to $237.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 12th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $245.59.

Read Our Latest Report on Valero Energy

Valero Energy Stock Performance

The firm’s 50-day moving average is $245.51 and its 200 day moving average is $212.81. The stock has a market cap of $73.41 billion, a PE ratio of 17.98, a P/E/G ratio of 0.38 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.58.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLOGet Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The oil and gas company reported $4.22 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.16 by $1.06. The firm had revenue of $32.38 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $31.38 billion. Valero Energy had a net margin of 3.37% and a return on equity of 15.94%. Valero Energy’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.89 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Valero Energy Corporation will post 26.83 EPS for the current year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 21st will be paid a $1.20 dividend. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 21st. Valero Energy’s payout ratio is currently 34.88%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Valero Energy

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the 4th quarter worth $1,111,542,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership acquired a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the 3rd quarter worth $275,239,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 2,635.7% during the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 950,527 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $154,736,000 after purchasing an additional 915,782 shares during the period. Amundi grew its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 45.3% during the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 2,584,976 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $638,695,000 after purchasing an additional 806,018 shares during the period. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 49.3% during the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,696,811 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $276,224,000 after purchasing an additional 560,116 shares during the period. 78.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Valero Energy

(Get Free Report)

Valero Energy Corporation is a San Antonio, Texas–based integrated downstream energy company that manufactures and markets transportation fuels, petrochemical feedstocks and other industrial products. The company’s operations focus on refining crude oil into finished fuels such as gasoline, diesel and jet fuel, as well as producing asphalt and other refined product streams for commercial and industrial customers.

In addition to refining, Valero has significant operations in renewable fuels, including the production of ethanol and other biofuels, and it manages an extensive logistics network of pipelines, terminals, rail and marine assets to move feedstocks and finished products.

Further Reading

Receive News & Ratings for Valero Energy Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Valero Energy and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.