Bank & Trust Co Reduces Stock Position in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Bank & Trust Co lowered its position in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 2.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 15,046 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 346 shares during the period. Valero Energy makes up about 1.5% of Bank & Trust Co’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest position. Bank & Trust Co’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $1,844,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 0.5% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 10,287,269 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,389,090,000 after purchasing an additional 50,837 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its holdings 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 valued at $1,090,532,000 after buying an additional 192,397 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 5.6% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 4,687,585 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $639,268,000 after acquiring an additional 247,630 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 5.8% in the second 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 acquiring an additional 237,347 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its position in Valero Energy by 18.8% during the 3rd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,585,166 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $484,105,000 after purchasing an additional 567,059 shares in the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Valero Energy Stock Up 2.0 %

NYSE:VLO traded up $2.39 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $124.51. The company had a trading volume of 1,302,512 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,849,538. Valero Energy Co. has a 1 year low of $116.84 and a 1 year high of $184.79. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $131.25 and a 200-day simple moving average of $139.65. The company has a current ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $39.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.17, a PEG ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.42.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The oil and gas company reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $32.88 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.04 billion. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 13.07% and a net margin of 2.74%. Valero Energy’s revenue for the quarter was down 14.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $7.49 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Valero Energy Co. will post 8.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 20th were paid a $1.07 dividend. This represents a $4.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.44%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, November 20th. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 38.39%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $192.00 to $176.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. TD Cowen reduced their price target on Valero Energy from $145.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on Valero Energy from $175.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 4th. Piper Sandler lowered Valero Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $169.00 to $123.00 in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Finally, Mizuho dropped their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $171.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Valero Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $155.07.

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.