HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC Lowers Position in Valero Energy Corporation $VLO

Key Points

• HITE Hedge Asset Management cut its stake in Valero by 77.9% in Q3, selling 40,428 shares and leaving it with 11,490 shares worth about $1.956 million.
• Insider selling: SVP Eric A. Fisher disclosed sales of 8,711 shares (8,311 on Mar 11 and 400 on Mar 12), reducing his position by roughly 16.4%, which may weigh on investor sentiment.
• Street view is mixed but constructive — the consensus rating is a Moderate Buy with Goldman Sachs raising its price target to $237 — and Valero recently raised its quarterly dividend to $1.20 (annualized $4.80, ~2.0% yield).

HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC trimmed its stake in shares of Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO - Free Report) by 77.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 11,490 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after selling 40,428 shares during the period. HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC's holdings in Valero Energy were worth $1,956,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Waddell & Associates LLC lifted its stake in Valero Energy by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. Waddell & Associates LLC now owns 2,040 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $347,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. DSG Capital Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Valero Energy by 1.6% during the third quarter. DSG Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,803 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $647,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Cypress Capital Group increased its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 0.3% in the third quarter. Cypress Capital Group now owns 18,786 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $3,199,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA increased its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 2.0% in the third quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 3,381 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $576,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Becker Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 0.6% in the third quarter. Becker Capital Management Inc. now owns 11,837 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $2,015,000 after buying an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Valero Energy news, SVP Eric A. Fisher sold 8,311 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.69, for a total value of $1,892,331.59. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 42,242 shares in the company, valued at $9,618,080.98. This represents a 16.44% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.04% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VLO has been the subject of a number of research reports. Bank of America reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $195.00 price target (down from $198.00) on shares of Valero Energy in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on Valero Energy from $203.00 to $237.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday. Wall Street Zen upgraded Valero Energy from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, February 7th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $175.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. Finally, UBS Group restated a "buy" rating on shares of Valero Energy in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $193.20.

Valero Energy News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Valero Energy this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Goldman Sachs raised its price target on VLO to $237 and kept a "buy" rating, providing visible sell‑side endorsement that can attract buyers and support the rally. Goldman Sachs raises PT
• Positive Sentiment: Geopolitical supply risk around the Strait of Hormuz has pushed crude higher and sent institutional flows into U.S. refiners; that demand-driven dynamic tends to boost refiners' margins and investor appetite for names like Valero. Hormuz crisis lifts refiners
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend-focused coverage is highlighting Valero as an attractive income stock, which can underpin longer-term buyer interest and reduce volatility for yield-seeking investors. Dividend thesis
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst fair-value and narrative updates show mixed Street views — a modest upward revision to fair value and some divergent target changes mean continued analyst attention but no clear consensus signal. Analyst narrative shift
• Neutral Sentiment: Market commentary and valuation checks note strong recent share-price momentum and elevated investor interest, prompting reassessments of where VLO belongs in portfolios (momentum may continue but raises valuation scrutiny). Valuation check
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling: SVP Eric A. Fisher disclosed sales of 8,311 shares on Mar 11 (avg $227.69) and 400 shares on Mar 12 (avg $238.60), a meaningful reduction in his stake (~16.4% decline in his position). Large insider sales can signal personal liquidity needs or reduced conviction and may damp investor sentiment. SEC Form 4 - Fisher sales
• Negative Sentiment: Policy risk: the White House is considering temporarily waiving the Jones Act to ease fuel shipping constraints and tame US pump prices — increased supply access could pressure domestic refining margins and weigh on near-term profitability for refiners. Jones Act waiver consideration

Valero Energy Stock Performance

VLO stock opened at $235.95 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $196.53 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $177.04. Valero Energy Corporation has a twelve month low of $99.00 and a twelve month high of $240.27. The firm has a market cap of $70.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.88, a PEG ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 0.70.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The oil and gas company reported $3.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.27 by $0.55. The firm had revenue of $30.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $28.20 billion. Valero Energy had a net margin of 1.91% and a return on equity of 12.35%. The business's revenue was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.64 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Valero Energy Corporation will post 7.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Valero Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 9th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 5th were given a $1.20 dividend. This is a positive change from Valero Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $1.13. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 5th. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. Valero Energy's dividend payout ratio is presently 62.83%.

Valero Energy Company 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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