Hilltop National Bank Purchases Shares of 1,628 Valero Energy Corporation $VLO

Key Points

• Hilltop National Bank has acquired a new stake of 1,628 shares in Valero Energy Corporation, valued at approximately $219,000.
• Valero Energy's quarterly earnings report revealed earnings per share of $2.28, surpassing estimates and marking a revenue of $29.89 billion.
• Various analysts have increased their price targets for Valero Energy, with Raymond James setting a new target of $177.00 and UBS Group hiking theirs to $183.00.

Hilltop National Bank bought a new stake in shares of Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 1,628 shares of the oil and gas company's stock, valued at approximately $219,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC raised its holdings in Valero Energy by 18.5% in the 1st quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 22,402 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $2,959,000 after purchasing an additional 3,503 shares in the last quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp raised its stake in Valero Energy by 8.9% in the first quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp now owns 46,474 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $6,138,000 after buying an additional 3,790 shares in the last quarter. United Super Pty Ltd in its capacity as Trustee for the Construction & Building Unions Superannuation Fund bought a new position in shares of Valero Energy in the 1st quarter worth approximately $766,000. FORA Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Valero Energy in the 1st quarter worth approximately $866,000. Finally, Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of Valero Energy in the 1st quarter worth approximately $462,000. Institutional investors own 78.69% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VLO has been the subject of a number of research reports. Raymond James Financial increased their price objective on Valero Energy from $170.00 to $177.00 and gave the stock a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 9th. Morgan Stanley lowered shares of Valero Energy from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $160.00 to $175.00 in a research note on Friday. Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $135.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research note on Friday, September 19th. Citigroup downgraded shares of Valero Energy from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and raised their target price for the company from $134.00 to $150.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $165.00 to $183.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, September 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $166.07.

Valero Energy Price Performance

Shares of VLO opened at $160.37 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $49.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 66.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $151.24 and a 200 day moving average of $136.92. Valero Energy Corporation has a twelve month low of $99.00 and a twelve month high of $178.43.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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 company had revenue of $29.89 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $27 billion. Valero Energy had a net margin of 0.62% and a return on equity of 5.76%. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 13.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.71 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Valero Energy Corporation will post 7.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Investors of record on Thursday, July 31st were issued a $1.13 dividend. This represents a $4.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 31st. Valero Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 188.33%.

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.

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