Old Port Advisors Reduces Position in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Old Port Advisors reduced its stake in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 3.2% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 5,115 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 169 shares during the period. Old Port Advisors’ holdings in Valero Energy were worth $627,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Independent Solutions Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. Independent Solutions Wealth Management LLC now owns 13,258 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,790,000 after purchasing an additional 273 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 0.8% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 368,454 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $49,752,000 after buying an additional 3,065 shares during the period. 1ST Source Bank boosted its position in Valero Energy by 3.3% during the third quarter. 1ST Source Bank now owns 4,286 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $579,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. Oddo BHF Asset Management Sas purchased a new stake in Valero Energy in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $2,283,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in Valero Energy by 5.6% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 4,687,585 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $639,268,000 after acquiring an additional 247,630 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VLO has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Valero Energy from $165.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 9th. Bank of America started coverage on Valero Energy in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $150.00 price target on the stock. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $146.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $149.00 to $131.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Finally, Mizuho decreased their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $171.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $155.07.

Valero Energy Stock Up 1.0 %

NYSE VLO traded up $1.23 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $123.82. The company had a trading volume of 523,205 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,926,495. Valero Energy Co. has a fifty-two week low of $116.84 and a fifty-two week high of $184.79. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $131.78 and its 200 day moving average is $140.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.57 and a quick ratio of 1.11. The company has a market capitalization of $39.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.10, a P/E/G ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.39.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The oil and gas company reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.16. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 13.07% and a net margin of 2.74%. The firm had revenue of $32.88 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.04 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $7.49 EPS. Valero Energy’s revenue for the quarter was down 14.4% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Valero Energy Co. will post 8.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th were paid a $1.07 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $4.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.46%. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.39%.

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.