Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) Price Target Raised to $441.00

Key Points

• Barclays raised Valero Energy’s price target to $441 from $323 and maintained an “overweight” rating, implying about 6.2% upside from the reported share price.
• Analyst sentiment is broadly positive: Valero has a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and a $356.19 average target, while Raymond James raised its target to $450 with a “strong-buy” rating.
• Valero reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $12.54 beating estimates by $2.43 and revenue rising 48.8% year over year; however, potential fuel-price declines from a planned G7 emergency inventory release could pressure refining margins.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO - Get Free Report) had its price target boosted by Barclays from $323.00 to $441.00 in a research note issued on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an "overweight" rating on the oil and gas company's stock. Barclays's price target would indicate a potential upside of 6.20% from the stock's current price.

Several other brokerages also recently commented on VLO. Raymond James Financial upped their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $350.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, September 14th. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $259.00 to $302.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Zacks Research raised Valero Energy from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Bank of America lifted their target price on Valero Energy from $395.00 to $414.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday. Finally, TD Cowen increased their price target on Valero Energy from $338.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $356.19.

Valero Energy Price Performance

Shares of Valero Energy stock traded down $4.06 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $415.27. The company had a trading volume of 400,662 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,349,051. The company has a current ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $358.82 and a 200 day simple moving average of $291.58. Valero Energy has a 1-year low of $155.29 and a 1-year high of $421.98. The company has a market capitalization of $119.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.27 and a beta of 0.59.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The oil and gas company reported $12.54 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $10.11 by $2.43. Valero Energy had a net margin of 5.17% and a return on equity of 26.74%. The business had revenue of $44.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $39.47 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.28 earnings per share. Valero Energy's revenue was up 48.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Valero Energy will post 49.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Valero Energy

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of VLO. Bank of America Corp DE grew its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 11.4% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 5,033,310 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $1,243,630,000 after buying an additional 516,975 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in Valero Energy by 9.4% in the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,969,320 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $733,660,000 after acquiring an additional 254,604 shares in the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its position in Valero Energy by 18.4% during the 1st quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 2,842,339 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $702,285,000 after acquiring an additional 442,177 shares during the last quarter. Amundi boosted its position in Valero Energy by 45.3% during the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 2,584,976 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $638,695,000 after acquiring an additional 806,018 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 33.9% during the 2nd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 2,058,341 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $536,074,000 after acquiring an additional 520,642 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.69% of the company's stock.

Key Stories Impacting Valero Energy

Here are the key news stories impacting Valero Energy this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Valero reached a fresh 52-week high, reflecting strong market momentum. Zacks highlights the company’s fundamentals as investors assess whether the rally can continue. Valero Energy Hits Fresh High: Is There Still Room to Run?
• Positive Sentiment: An analyst upgrade helped Valero shares establish another 52-week high, providing a positive near-term catalyst and reinforcing bullish sentiment. Valero Energy Hits New 52-Week High Following Analyst Upgrade
• Positive Sentiment: Valero is being identified as a leading momentum stock. Its recent price strength and favorable style factors may attract additional momentum-oriented investors. Why Valero Energy Is a Great Momentum Choice
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street expects third-quarter EPS to increase by a triple-digit percentage, raising expectations for Valero’s upcoming earnings report. Its latest quarter also exceeded consensus estimates for both EPS and revenue, supporting the bullish outlook. What to Expect From Valero Energy’s Next Quarterly Earnings Report
• Neutral Sentiment: Valero’s strong rally has improved sentiment, but the stock’s elevated valuation and proximity to its 52-week high could limit further gains if earnings or refining margins disappoint. Valero Energy Fresh High Analysis
• Negative Sentiment: The G7’s planned release of up to 100 million barrels of emergency oil and diesel inventories is intended to reduce record fuel prices. Lower diesel prices could pressure refining margins and weigh on Valero’s future profitability. G7 Releases 100 Million Barrels as Diesel Tops $6 a Gallon

About Valero Energy

Valero Energy Corporation is an international petroleum refining, renewable fuels and marketing company headquartered in San Antonio, Texas. Founded in 1980, the company processes crude oil and other feedstocks into transportation fuels and other products used by commercial, industrial and consumer customers.

Valero's refined products include gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, asphalt, lubricants and petrochemical feedstocks. The company also produces and markets ethanol and renewable diesel, including through its Diamond Green Diesel joint venture with Darling Ingredients.

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