Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) Stock Holdings Boosted by Smartleaf Asset Management LLC

Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 23.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 16,056 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,004 shares during the quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $1,920,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of VLO. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. raised its position in Valero Energy by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 123,356 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $14,751,000 after acquiring an additional 455 shares in the last quarter. Kieckhefer Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Valero Energy in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,226,000. Hudson Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Valero Energy by 6.5% during the fourth quarter. Hudson Capital Management LLC now owns 31,792 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $3,897,000 after purchasing an additional 1,937 shares during the last quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Valero Energy during the fourth quarter worth approximately $274,000. Finally, Captrust Financial Advisors grew its position in Valero Energy by 7.5% in the third quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 89,762 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $12,121,000 after buying an additional 6,278 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Tudor Pickering upgraded Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Valero Energy from $160.00 to $159.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Piper Sandler raised Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $146.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Mizuho dropped their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $165.00 to $158.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Valero Energy currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $154.46.

Valero Energy Trading Up 0.7 %

Valero Energy stock opened at $130.59 on Friday. 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 12 month low of $116.84 and a 12 month high of $184.79. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $132.06 and its 200-day simple moving average is $135.14. The stock has a market cap of $41.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.40, a P/E/G ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 1.42.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The oil and gas company reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 forecast that Valero Energy Co. will post 7.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 30th will be paid a $1.13 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, January 30th. This is a boost from Valero Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.07. This represents a $4.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.46%. 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.