Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) Stock Holdings Lowered by Primecap Management Co. CA

Primecap Management Co. CA reduced its holdings in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 34.1% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 217,265 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 112,435 shares during the quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA owned 0.07% of Valero Energy worth $34,058,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Acadian Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 37.6% during the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 1,558,750 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $266,040,000 after acquiring an additional 426,093 shares during the period. Bank of Nova Scotia raised its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 721.4% during the fourth quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 337,911 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $43,927,000 after acquiring an additional 296,771 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 5.8% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,319,436 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $677,007,000 after acquiring an additional 237,347 shares during the period. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the first quarter valued at approximately $39,517,000. Finally, Ninety One UK Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 124.7% during the second quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 291,856 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $45,751,000 after acquiring an additional 161,982 shares during the period. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Valero Energy Stock Performance

VLO stock opened at $135.85 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The company has a market capitalization of $43.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.73, a P/E/G ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 1.40. Valero Energy Co. has a 12 month low of $119.88 and a 12 month high of $184.79. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $146.01 and a two-hundred day moving average of $155.37.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The oil and gas company reported $2.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.60 by $0.11. Valero Energy had a net margin of 4.25% and a return on equity of 21.01%. The business had revenue of $34.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $32.97 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $5.40 earnings per share. Valero Energy’s revenue for the quarter was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Valero Energy Co. will post 12.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 1st were paid a $1.07 dividend. This represents a $4.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.15%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 1st. Valero Energy’s payout ratio is 21.20%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of Valero Energy in a report on Thursday, July 18th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $177.00 price target on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Valero Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective 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. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $165.00 to $172.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Finally, Mizuho lowered their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $175.00 to $171.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $171.36.

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.