Great Lakes Advisors LLC Acquires Shares of 1,999 Valero Energy Corporation $VLO

Key Points

• Great Lakes Advisors LLC acquired 1,999 shares of Valero Energy Corporation, valued at approximately $264,000, highlighting ongoing institutional interest in the company.
• Valero Energy reported a quarterly earnings per share of $2.28, exceeding analysts' expectations of $1.66, and generated revenue of $29.89 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $1.13, equating to an annualized dividend yield of 2.9%, with a payout ratio of 188.33%.

Great Lakes Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 1,999 shares of the oil and gas company's stock, valued at approximately $264,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Valero Energy by 12.0% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 38,881,222 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $5,135,043,000 after buying an additional 4,155,522 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 6.9% in the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 11,437,765 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $1,510,586,000 after purchasing an additional 736,533 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 276.9% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 10,795,436 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $1,425,754,000 after purchasing an additional 7,931,018 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 34.1% in the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,905,145 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $647,823,000 after purchasing an additional 1,247,196 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Valero Energy in the first quarter worth approximately $529,864,000. 78.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Valero Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:VLO opened at $156.78 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $48.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 65.33, a P/E/G ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.10. Valero Energy Corporation has a 1-year low of $99.00 and a 1-year high of $163.02. The company has a current ratio of 1.62, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $145.24 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $132.87.

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, topping the consensus estimate of $1.66 by $0.62. The firm had revenue of $29.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $27 billion. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 5.76% and a net margin of 0.62%.The company's quarterly revenue was down 13.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.71 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Valero Energy Corporation will post 7.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 31st were paid a $1.13 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 31st. This represents a $4.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. Valero Energy's dividend payout ratio is 188.33%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VLO has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. TD Cowen downgraded Valero Energy from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and increased their price target for the company from $118.00 to $140.00 in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Citigroup cut Valero Energy from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $134.00 to $150.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Valero Energy from $164.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Evercore ISI initiated coverage on Valero Energy in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. They set an "in-line" rating and a $135.00 price objective for the company. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $158.87.

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.

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