Wedbush Securities Inc. Has $1.62 Million Position in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Wedbush Securities Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 8.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 10,350 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 952 shares during the period. Wedbush Securities Inc.’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $1,623,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. EdgeRock Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Lynx Investment Advisory bought a new stake in shares of Valero Energy in the 2nd quarter worth $29,000. Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Valero Energy in the second quarter valued at about $31,000. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the first quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Pathway Financial Advisers LLC purchased a new position in Valero Energy during the first quarter worth about $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Valero Energy Stock Down 0.0 %

VLO opened at $134.17 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $148.31 and a 200 day moving average of $155.70. The company has a current ratio of 1.48, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. Valero Energy Co. has a 12 month low of $119.88 and a 12 month high of $184.79. The company has a market cap of $42.99 billion, a PE ratio of 6.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 1.40.

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 for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.60 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $34.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $32.97 billion. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 21.01% and a net margin of 4.25%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $5.40 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Valero Energy Co. will post 12.3 EPS for the current year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 1st were issued a $1.07 dividend. This represents a $4.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.19%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 1st. Valero Energy’s payout ratio is 21.20%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VLO has been the subject of several analyst reports. StockNews.com lowered shares of Valero Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Mizuho upgraded Valero Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $165.00 to $175.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Valero Energy from $178.00 to $172.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 2nd. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on Valero Energy from $187.00 to $169.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, June 14th. Finally, Scotiabank increased their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $165.00 to $173.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $174.50.

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.