Moors & Cabot Inc. Sells 405 Shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Moors & Cabot Inc. lessened its stake in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 3.3% in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 12,033 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 405 shares during the period. Moors & Cabot Inc.’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $1,886,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Collective Family Office LLC increased its holdings in Valero Energy by 1.5% in the first quarter. Collective Family Office LLC now owns 4,040 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $690,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in Valero Energy by 4.7% in the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,327 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $227,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares during the period. International Private Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in Valero Energy by 3.4% in the second quarter. International Private Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,970 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $309,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares during the period. Aua Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Valero Energy by 3.1% in the first quarter. Aua Capital Management LLC now owns 2,261 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $386,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the period. Finally, OmniStar Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in Valero Energy by 1.6% in the second quarter. OmniStar Financial Group Inc. now owns 4,543 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $712,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Valero Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE VLO opened at $135.85 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $146.01 and a 200 day moving average price of $155.37. Valero Energy Co. has a 52 week low of $119.88 and a 52 week high of $184.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $43.52 billion, a PE ratio of 6.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 1.40.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The oil and gas company reported $2.71 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.60 by $0.11. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 21.01% and a net margin of 4.25%. The firm had revenue of $34.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $32.97 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $5.40 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Valero Energy Co. will post 12.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, August 1st were given a dividend of $1.07 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 1st. This represents a $4.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.15%. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.20%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on VLO. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Valero Energy from $165.00 to $172.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd. Mizuho decreased their target price on Valero Energy from $175.00 to $171.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Piper Sandler decreased their target price on Valero Energy from $187.00 to $169.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, June 14th. Barclays decreased their target price on Valero Energy from $171.00 to $165.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Valero Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Valero Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $171.36.

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.