Graypoint LLC Sells 329 Shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Graypoint LLC cut its holdings in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 17,621 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 329 shares during the quarter. Graypoint LLC’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $2,379,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its position in Valero Energy by 2.8% during the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 6,956,743 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,090,532,000 after acquiring an additional 192,397 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in Valero Energy by 5.8% in the 2nd 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 buying an additional 237,347 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Valero Energy by 1.9% during the second quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,018,107 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $473,118,000 after acquiring an additional 56,989 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its holdings in Valero Energy by 3.0% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 2,809,355 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $440,394,000 after acquiring an additional 82,539 shares during the period. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in Valero Energy by 3.3% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,063,923 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $352,292,000 after purchasing an additional 65,632 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VLO has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Valero Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $175.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Valero Energy from $172.00 to $151.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $165.00 to $146.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $192.00 to $176.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 25th. One investment 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $156.29.

Valero Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE VLO opened at $138.71 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.44, a P/E/G ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $136.20 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $147.77. Valero Energy Co. has a twelve month low of $119.88 and a twelve month high of $184.79.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The oil and gas company reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $32.88 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $31.04 billion. Valero Energy had a net margin of 2.74% and a return on equity of 13.07%. Valero Energy’s quarterly revenue was down 14.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $7.49 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Valero Energy Co. will post 9.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be paid a $1.07 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $4.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.09%. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio 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.