Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. Increases Stock Holdings in Valvoline $VVV

Key Points

• Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. increased its holdings in Valvoline by 63.2% by acquiring 363,170 shares, bringing their total to 938,170 shares valued at approximately $32.66 million.
• Valvoline reported earnings per share of $0.47 for the last quarter, slightly beating analysts' expectations, with a revenue increase of 4.2% year-over-year.
• Multiple institutions, including Fiduciary Management and Boston Partners, have either increased their stakes or acquired new shares in Valvoline, indicating strong institutional interest in the company, which now has 96.13% of its stock owned by institutional investors.

Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. grew its holdings in shares of Valvoline (NYSE:VVV - Free Report) by 63.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 938,170 shares of the basic materials company's stock after buying an additional 363,170 shares during the period. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. owned 0.74% of Valvoline worth $32,658,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of VVV. Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in Valvoline by 24.2% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,161,652 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $42,029,000 after purchasing an additional 226,085 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC increased its position in Valvoline by 8.8% during the 4th quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 107,206 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $3,879,000 after buying an additional 8,677 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its holdings in Valvoline by 61.8% in the fourth quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 120,214 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $4,349,000 after acquiring an additional 45,928 shares in the last quarter. Bayesian Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Valvoline in the fourth quarter worth $264,000. Finally, Captrust Financial Advisors increased its holdings in shares of Valvoline by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 22,124 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $800,000 after acquiring an additional 438 shares in the last quarter. 96.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Valvoline

In other Valvoline news, CFO J Kevin Willis acquired 12,725 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 14th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $39.41 per share, with a total value of $501,492.25. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief financial officer directly owned 12,725 shares in the company, valued at approximately $501,492.25. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.66% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on VVV. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Valvoline from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Sunday. Cfra Research raised shares of Valvoline to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, July 7th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Valvoline from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Zacks Research raised Valvoline to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 12th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised Valvoline from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $40.00 to $45.00 in a research report on Tuesday, June 3rd. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $42.77.

Valvoline Stock Performance

Shares of VVV stock traded down $0.24 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $39.74. 1,998,685 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,717,128. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $38.07 and a 200 day moving average price of $36.13. The company has a market cap of $5.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.48 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.37, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.60. Valvoline has a 12-month low of $31.01 and a 12-month high of $43.74.

Valvoline (NYSE:VVV - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The basic materials company reported $0.47 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.46 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $439.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $436.35 million. Valvoline had a net margin of 16.43% and a return on equity of 84.85%. The firm's revenue was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.45 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Valvoline will post 1.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Valvoline Profile

Valvoline Inc engages in the operation and franchising of vehicle service centers and retail stores in the United States and Canada. The company, through its service centers, provides fluid exchange for motor oil, transmission and differential fluid, and coolant; parts replacement for batteries, filters, wiper blades, and belts; and safety services, such as tire inflation and rotation, bulbs, and safety checks.