Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) Shares Sold by First Financial Bankshares Inc

First Financial Bankshares Inc cut its holdings in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 56.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,947 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 3,783 shares during the period. First Financial Bankshares Inc’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $361,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in shares of Valero Energy by 4,908.0% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,850,526 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $384,907,000 after buying an additional 2,793,607 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Valero Energy in the 4th quarter valued at $132,469,000. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund increased its holdings in Valero Energy by 900.2% in the 3rd quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 631,095 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $85,217,000 after acquiring an additional 568,000 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its position in Valero Energy by 18.8% during the third quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,585,166 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $484,105,000 after acquiring an additional 567,059 shares during the period. Finally, Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Valero Energy during the third quarter valued at $70,352,000. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VLO has been the subject of a number of research reports. Tudor Pickering raised shares of Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Mizuho cut 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. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Valero Energy from $160.00 to $159.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on Valero Energy from $149.00 to $144.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $156.08.

Valero Energy Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of VLO stock opened at $131.97 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. Valero Energy Co. has a twelve month low of $116.84 and a twelve month high of $184.79. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $133.50 and its 200-day moving average price is $133.58. The stock has a market cap of $41.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.56, a PEG ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 1.36.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The oil and gas company reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.50. Valero Energy had a net margin of 2.13% and a return on equity of 9.58%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Valero Energy Co. will post 7.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Valero Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, January 30th were given a $1.13 dividend. This represents a $4.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.43%. This is a positive change from Valero Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.07. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 30th. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 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.