F M Investments LLC Lowers Position in Valvoline Inc. (NYSE:VVV)

F M Investments LLC trimmed its position in shares of Valvoline Inc. (NYSE:VVV) by 0.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 276,968 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 621 shares during the quarter. F M Investments LLC’s holdings in Valvoline were worth $11,591,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. UMB Bank n.a. increased its stake in shares of Valvoline by 92.1% in the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 630 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 302 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in shares of Valvoline by 57.9% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 728 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 267 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Valvoline in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Mather Group LLC. increased its holdings in shares of Valvoline by 1,617.0% during the second quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 807 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 760 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in Valvoline by 46.5% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,465 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $61,000 after buying an additional 465 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.13% of the company’s stock.

Valvoline Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of Valvoline stock traded up $0.09 on Friday, reaching $40.37. The company had a trading volume of 951,736 shares, compared to its average volume of 988,871. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $41.15 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $42.00. Valvoline Inc. has a 1 year low of $29.15 and a 1 year high of $48.26. The firm has a market cap of $5.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.83 and a beta of 1.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.57, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.62.

Valvoline (NYSE:VVV) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The basic materials company reported $0.45 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $421.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $425.17 million. Valvoline had a net margin of 10.45% and a return on equity of 182.88%. The company’s revenue was up 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.43 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Valvoline Inc. will post 1.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Valvoline announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, July 30th that allows the company to repurchase $400.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the basic materials company to repurchase up to 7.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on Valvoline from $54.00 to $48.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Valvoline from $50.00 to $46.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Stephens assumed coverage on shares of Valvoline in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $49.00 target price for the company. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Valvoline from $45.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Finally, Baird R W raised shares of Valvoline to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Valvoline presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $47.75.

About Valvoline

Valvoline Inc engages in the operation and franchising of vehicle service centers and retail stores in the United States and Canada. The company, through its service centers, provides fluid exchange for motor oil, transmission and differential fluid, and coolant; parts replacement for batteries, filters, wiper blades, and belts; and safety services, such as tire inflation and rotation, bulbs, and safety checks.