J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. Acquires 5,779 Shares of Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO)

J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO - Free Report) by 222.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 8,372 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after buying an additional 5,779 shares during the period. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $1,106,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. World Investment Advisors raised its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 4,323 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $530,000 after buying an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. Providence Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Valero Energy by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Providence Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 8,878 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $1,086,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares during the period. Field & Main Bank raised its position in shares of Valero Energy by 1.2% during the first quarter. Field & Main Bank now owns 7,982 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $1,054,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the period. Heritage Wealth Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Valero Energy by 0.5% during the first quarter. Heritage Wealth Management Inc. now owns 19,349 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $2,555,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the period. Finally, KCM Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Valero Energy by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. KCM Investment Advisors LLC now owns 5,497 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $674,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 78.69% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently issued reports on VLO shares. Evercore ISI started coverage on Valero Energy in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. They set an "in-line" rating and a $135.00 price target for the company. Raymond James Financial upped their price target on Valero Energy from $155.00 to $172.00 and gave the stock a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Mizuho upped their price target on Valero Energy from $158.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Wolfe Research downgraded Valero Energy from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on Valero Energy from $164.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $153.87.

Valero Energy Price Performance

Shares of VLO traded up $1.69 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $142.03. The company had a trading volume of 2,786,874 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,458,177. Valero Energy Corporation has a twelve month low of $99.00 and a twelve month high of $167.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 1.56 and a quick ratio of 1.09. The company's 50-day moving average is $137.66 and its 200-day moving average is $130.84. The company has a market capitalization of $44.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 59.18, a P/E/G ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 1.00.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The oil and gas company reported $2.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.66 by $0.62. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 5.74% and a net margin of 0.62%. The business had revenue of $29.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $27 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.71 EPS. Valero Energy's quarterly revenue was down 13.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Valero Energy Corporation will post 7.92 EPS for the current year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Investors of record on Thursday, July 31st will be given a dividend of $1.13 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 31st. This represents a $4.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.18%. Valero Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 188.33%.

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.