Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC Reduces Stock Holdings in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC reduced its stake in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 3.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 167,052 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 5,557 shares during the period. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $20,479,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Valero Energy by 0.5% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 10,287,269 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,389,090,000 after acquiring an additional 50,837 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in shares of Valero Energy by 5.6% during the third 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 last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Valero Energy by 13.6% during the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 4,072,188 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $499,210,000 after acquiring an additional 487,022 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in shares of Valero Energy by 4,908.0% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,850,526 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $384,907,000 after acquiring an additional 2,793,607 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. grew its position in shares of Valero Energy by 6.3% during the third quarter. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. now owns 2,533,434 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $342,090,000 after acquiring an additional 151,200 shares during the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on VLO. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $160.00 to $159.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. TD Cowen decreased their price target on Valero Energy from $145.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. Citigroup decreased their price target on Valero Energy from $192.00 to $176.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. Mizuho decreased their price target on Valero Energy from $165.00 to $158.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price target on Valero Energy from $146.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $154.46.

Valero Energy Price Performance

Valero Energy stock opened at $135.49 on Friday. Valero Energy Co. has a one year low of $116.84 and a one year high of $184.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.57. The business has a fifty day moving average of $130.55 and a two-hundred day moving average of $136.52. The company has a market cap of $42.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 1.42.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The oil and gas company reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.14 by $0.50. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 9.58% and a net margin of 2.13%. As a group, analysts predict that Valero Energy Co. will post 7.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 30th will be paid a dividend of $1.13 per share. This represents a $4.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.34%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 30th. This is an increase from Valero Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.07. Valero Energy’s payout ratio is 53.30%.

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.