Infrastructure Capital Advisors LLC Sells 14,749 Shares of Valero Energy Corporation $VLO

Key Points

• Infrastructure Capital Advisors cut its Valero Energy stake by 69.8% in the first quarter, selling 14,749 shares and retaining 6,374 shares worth approximately $1.575 million. Institutional investors collectively own 78.69% of VLO.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with Valero receiving a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $266.71; recent target increases ranged as high as $302.
• Valero reported quarterly EPS of $4.22, beating estimates by $1.06, while revenue rose 7% year over year to $32.38 billion. The company declared a quarterly dividend of $1.20 per share, equivalent to a 1.6% annual yield.

Infrastructure Capital Advisors LLC lessened its stake in shares of Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO - Free Report) by 69.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 6,374 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after selling 14,749 shares during the quarter. Infrastructure Capital Advisors LLC's holdings in Valero Energy were worth $1,575,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of VLO. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. boosted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 33.5% in the fourth quarter. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. now owns 42,376 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $6,898,000 after acquiring an additional 10,634 shares during the period. Friedenthal Financial bought a new position in Valero Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $954,000. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. increased its position in Valero Energy by 24.7% during the fourth quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 565,171 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $92,004,000 after acquiring an additional 112,118 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co. raised its stake in Valero Energy by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 212,104 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $37,812,000 after purchasing an additional 5,694 shares in the last quarter. Finally, V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new stake in Valero Energy in the 4th quarter worth about $1,079,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.69% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VLO has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Mizuho increased their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $222.00 to $289.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $259.00 to $302.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Scotiabank boosted their price target on Valero Energy from $178.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Valero Energy from $232.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, June 12th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Valero Energy from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Thursday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $266.71.

Insider Transactions at Valero Energy

In related news, SVP Eric A. Fisher sold 7,500 shares of Valero Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $268.17, for a total value of $2,011,275.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 19,742 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,294,212.14. This trade represents a 27.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.36% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Valero Energy Trading Up 0.8%

VLO opened at $304.99 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $90.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.16, a P/E/G ratio of 0.20 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. Valero Energy Corporation has a twelve month low of $130.78 and a twelve month high of $320.24. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $266.16 and a 200 day simple moving average of $235.67.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The oil and gas company reported $4.22 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.16 by $1.06. The firm had revenue of $32.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.38 billion. Valero Energy had a net margin of 3.37% and a return on equity of 15.94%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.89 EPS. Analysts predict that Valero Energy Corporation will post 36.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 31st. Investors of record on Friday, July 31st will be given a dividend of $1.20 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 31st. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.6%. Valero Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 34.88%.

Valero Energy 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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