DNB Asset Management AS lowered its stake in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO – Get Rating) by 2.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 88,965 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 1,843 shares during the period. DNB Asset Management AS’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $11,286,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust increased its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 3.8% in the third quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 2,122 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $227,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares during the period. OneAscent Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Valero Energy by 2.7% during the third quarter. OneAscent Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,318 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $355,000 after acquiring an additional 86 shares during the period. First National Corp MA ADV grew its holdings in Valero Energy by 2.2% during the third quarter. First National Corp MA ADV now owns 4,328 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $462,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares during the period. Blair William & Co. IL grew its holdings in Valero Energy by 0.3% during the third quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 31,315 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $3,346,000 after acquiring an additional 94 shares during the period. Finally, Leavell Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Valero Energy by 4.5% during the third quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,306 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $246,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.28% of the company’s stock.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
A number of brokerages recently weighed in on VLO. UBS Group began coverage on Valero Energy in a report on Wednesday, March 8th. They set a “buy” rating and a $176.00 price objective on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on Valero Energy from $111.00 to $126.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, January 19th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Valero Energy from $140.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 20th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Valero Energy from $140.00 to $160.00 in a report on Friday, January 27th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upgraded Valero Energy from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $135.00 to $160.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $151.38.
Valero Energy Stock Up 2.0 %
Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO – Get Rating) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 26th. The oil and gas company reported $8.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.45 by $1.00. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 50.15% and a net margin of 6.54%. The business had revenue of $41.75 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $43.31 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.47 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 16.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Valero Energy Co. will post 24.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Valero Energy Increases Dividend
The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 16th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 14th were given a $1.02 dividend. This is an increase from Valero Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.98. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.16%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 13th. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 14.01%.
About Valero Energy
Valero Energy Corp. engages in the manufacture and marketing of transportation fuels and other petrochemical products. It operates through the following business segments: Refining, Ethanol and Renewable Diesel. The Refining segment consists of refining operations, associated marketing activities, and logistics assets that support its refining operations.
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