Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) Shares Sold by Gabelli Funds LLC

Gabelli Funds LLC lessened its position in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 15.3% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 57,500 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 10,400 shares during the period. Gabelli Funds LLC’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $9,815,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Collective Family Office LLC grew its holdings in Valero Energy by 1.5% during the 1st quarter. Collective Family Office LLC now owns 4,040 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $690,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 4.7% in the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,327 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $227,000 after buying an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Covenant Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. Covenant Asset Management LLC now owns 14,659 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $2,502,000 after buying an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 1.1% in the 1st quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,797 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $990,000 after buying an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rovin Capital UT ADV boosted its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 3.5% in the 1st quarter. Rovin Capital UT ADV now owns 1,968 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $336,000 after buying an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Valero Energy

In related news, Director Kimberly S. Greene sold 720 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.12, for a total value of $113,846.40. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 13,314 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,105,209.68. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.04% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on VLO shares. Argus cut shares of Valero Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, May 16th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $160.00 to $192.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Valero Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Piper Sandler reduced their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $187.00 to $169.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, June 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $156.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Valero Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $172.07.

Valero Energy Price Performance

Shares of VLO traded up $2.12 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $159.12. The company had a trading volume of 3,151,478 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,537,062. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $153.61 and a 200-day simple moving average of $153.18. The company has a current ratio of 1.59, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The company has a market capitalization of $52.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.88, a PEG ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 1.42. Valero Energy Co. has a 12-month low of $119.88 and a 12-month high of $184.79.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The oil and gas company reported $2.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.60 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $34.49 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $32.97 billion. Valero Energy had a net margin of 4.25% and a return on equity of 20.97%. The business’s revenue was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $5.40 EPS. Research analysts expect that Valero Energy Co. will post 13.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, August 1st will be paid a $1.07 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 1st. This represents a $4.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.69%. Valero Energy’s payout ratio is 21.20%.

About Valero Energy

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.