Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) Shares Sold by Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund

Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund reduced its stake in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 7.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 11,235 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 894 shares during the quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $1,918,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Valero Energy during the first quarter worth about $33,000. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Valero Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. First Foundation Advisors purchased a new stake in shares of Valero Energy in the first quarter valued at about $37,000. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Valero Energy in the first quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, DT Investment Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Valero Energy in the fourth quarter valued at about $45,000. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have issued reports on VLO. Scotiabank upped their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $165.00 to $173.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Friday, July 12th. Piper Sandler reduced their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $187.00 to $169.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, June 14th. TD Cowen reduced their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $190.00 to $185.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 29th. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $171.00 to $165.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $178.00 to $172.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Valero Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $172.07.

Valero Energy Trading Up 1.4 %

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

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The oil and gas company reported $2.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.60 by $0.11. Valero Energy had a net margin of 4.25% and a return on equity of 20.97%. The firm had revenue of $34.49 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $32.97 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $5.40 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Valero Energy Co. will post 13.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Valero Energy news, Director Kimberly S. Greene sold 720 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.12, for a total transaction of $113,846.40. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.04% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.