Palumbo Wealth Management LLC Makes New Investment in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Palumbo Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 3,174 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock, valued at approximately $389,000.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in VLO. Inspire Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 24.0% in the 3rd quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 2,104 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $284,000 after buying an additional 407 shares during the period. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the 3rd quarter worth $609,000. Creative Planning lifted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 84,573 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $11,420,000 after purchasing an additional 3,097 shares during the last quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 10,170 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,373,000 after purchasing an additional 297 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 39,344 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $5,313,000 after purchasing an additional 573 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 equities research analysts recently weighed in on VLO shares. Mizuho decreased their price objective on Valero Energy from $165.00 to $158.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on Valero Energy from $192.00 to $176.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Piper Sandler upgraded Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Tudor Pickering upgraded Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, 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 research note on Friday, October 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Valero Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $154.46.

Valero Energy Stock Up 3.4 %

Valero Energy stock opened at $135.49 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $42.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 1.42. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $130.55 and its 200 day moving average price is $136.52. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. Valero Energy Co. has a 52 week low of $116.84 and a 52 week high of $184.79.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The oil and gas company reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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, sell-side analysts anticipate that Valero Energy Co. will post 7.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Valero Energy Increases Dividend

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

Valero Energy 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.