Davis R M Inc. Buys Shares of 2,074 Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO)

Key Points

• Davis R M Inc. acquired 2,074 shares of Valero Energy Corporation valued at approximately $274,000, as reported in its 13F filing with the SEC.
• Valero's recent quarterly earnings showed an EPS of $2.28, exceeding analysts' estimates, but the company's revenue declined by 13.3% year-over-year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $1.13 per share, with an annualized payout of $4.52 and a dividend yield of 3.4%.

Davis R M Inc. acquired a new stake in Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 2,074 shares of the oil and gas company's stock, valued at approximately $274,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 15,395.5% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,355,699 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $179,047,000 after purchasing an additional 1,346,950 shares during the last quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the fourth quarter worth $98,376,000. Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 15.9% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,850,859 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $472,077,000 after purchasing an additional 529,513 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 22.5% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,864,418 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $351,151,000 after purchasing an additional 525,255 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 5.7% during the fourth quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 7,938,335 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $973,119,000 after purchasing an additional 429,252 shares during the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Valero Energy Stock Up 1.5%

Shares of NYSE VLO traded up $1.98 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $135.16. 2,920,296 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,402,946. Valero Energy Corporation has a 52-week low of $99.00 and a 52-week high of $155.12. The stock has a market capitalization of $41.99 billion, a PE ratio of 56.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.62. The business's fifty day moving average price is $138.61 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $131.07.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 24th. The oil and gas company reported $2.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.66 by $0.62. The firm had revenue of $29.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $27 billion. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 5.76% and a net margin of 0.62%. Valero Energy's quarterly revenue was down 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.71 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Valero Energy Corporation will post 7.92 EPS for the current year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Investors of record on Thursday, July 31st will be issued a $1.13 dividend. This represents a $4.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 31st. Valero Energy's payout ratio is currently 188.33%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Evercore ISI began coverage on Valero Energy in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. They set an "in-line" rating and a $135.00 price objective on the stock. Scotiabank reduced their target price on Valero Energy from $156.00 to $136.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Valero Energy from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their target price for the company from $127.00 to $154.00 in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Valero Energy from $151.00 to $168.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on Valero Energy from $140.00 to $141.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $154.47.

Valero Energy Company 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.