287,820 Shares in Valero Energy Corporation $VLO Purchased by Life Cycle Investment Partners Ltd

Key Points

• Life Cycle Investment Partners Ltd initiated a new position in Valero Energy, buying 287,820 shares valued at about $46.9 million in the fourth quarter and ending with 0.09% ownership.
• Valero reported better-than-expected quarterly results, posting EPS of $4.22 versus the $3.16 consensus and revenue of $32.38 billion, up 7% year over year.
• The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $1.20 per share to be paid June 23, while analysts remain broadly positive with a Moderate Buy rating and an average target price of $237.94.

Life Cycle Investment Partners Ltd bought a new position in shares of Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 287,820 shares of the oil and gas company's stock, valued at approximately $46,854,000. Life Cycle Investment Partners Ltd owned 0.09% of Valero Energy at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership purchased a new position in shares of Valero Energy in the 3rd quarter worth about $275,239,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 2,635.7% in the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 950,527 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $154,736,000 after purchasing an additional 915,782 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 5.0% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 5,273,517 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $897,869,000 after purchasing an additional 249,195 shares during the period. Voloridge Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 96.5% in the 3rd quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 444,919 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $75,752,000 after purchasing an additional 218,448 shares during the period. Finally, Barclays PLC grew its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 5.3% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 4,143,672 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $705,502,000 after buying an additional 209,597 shares in the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Valero Energy news, SVP Eric A. Fisher sold 400 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $238.60, for a total transaction of $95,440.00. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.36% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Valero Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE VLO opened at $247.08 on Friday. Valero Energy Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $125.10 and a fifty-two week high of $263.75. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $241.89 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $204.54. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The firm has a market cap of $73.36 billion, a PE ratio of 17.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.36 and a beta of 0.58.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The oil and gas company reported $4.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.16 by $1.06. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 15.94% and a net margin of 3.37%.The firm had revenue of $32.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.38 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.89 EPS. Valero Energy's quarterly revenue was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Valero Energy Corporation will post 26.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 21st will be paid a dividend of $1.20 per share. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 21st. Valero Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 34.88%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on VLO shares. Raymond James Financial increased their target price on Valero Energy from $215.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 25th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Valero Energy from $182.00 to $222.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Piper Sandler increased their target price on Valero Energy from $236.00 to $263.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. UBS Group increased their target price on Valero Energy from $215.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Valero Energy from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Valero Energy currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $237.94.

Valero Energy Profile

Valero Energy Corporation is a San Antonio, Texas–based integrated downstream energy company that manufactures and markets transportation fuels, petrochemical feedstocks and other industrial products. The company's operations focus on refining crude oil into finished fuels such as gasoline, diesel and jet fuel, as well as producing asphalt and other refined product streams for commercial and industrial customers.

In addition to refining, Valero has significant operations in renewable fuels, including the production of ethanol and other biofuels, and it manages an extensive logistics network of pipelines, terminals, rail and marine assets to move feedstocks and finished products.

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