Leonteq Securities AG Sells 12,119 Shares of Valero Energy Corporation $VLO

Key Points

• Leonteq Securities AG cut its Valero Energy stake by 75.7% in the first quarter, selling 12,119 shares and leaving it with 3,888 shares valued at about $961,000.
• Valero reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $4.22 beating estimates by $1.06 and revenue of $32.38 billion topping expectations; revenue also rose 7% year over year.
• The company remains active with a quarterly dividend of $1.20 and has seen mixed analyst sentiment, though the consensus rating is still “Moderate Buy” with an average target price of $247.59.

Leonteq Securities AG decreased its position in shares of Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO - Free Report) by 75.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,888 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after selling 12,119 shares during the period. Leonteq Securities AG's holdings in Valero Energy were worth $961,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in Valero Energy during the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,126,000. DSG Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Valero Energy by 44.6% during the 1st quarter. DSG Capital Advisors LLC now owns 6,086 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $1,504,000 after purchasing an additional 1,876 shares in the last quarter. Keybank National Association OH raised its position in Valero Energy by 9.3% in the 1st quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 18,043 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $4,458,000 after purchasing an additional 1,537 shares during the last quarter. Mitchell & Pahl Private Wealth LLC raised its position in Valero Energy by 2.5% in the 1st quarter. Mitchell & Pahl Private Wealth LLC now owns 15,196 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $3,754,000 after purchasing an additional 370 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KPP Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in Valero Energy by 2.5% in the first quarter. KPP Advisory Services LLC now owns 2,156 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $533,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.69% of the company's stock.

Valero Energy Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of VLO opened at $267.99 on Friday. 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 12-month low of $130.78 and a 12-month high of $274.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $79.57 billion, a PE ratio of 19.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.37 and a beta of 0.55. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $249.73 and its 200-day simple moving average is $220.63.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The oil and gas company reported $4.22 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.16 by $1.06. The firm had revenue of $32.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.38 billion. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 15.94% and a net margin of 3.37%.The company's revenue was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.89 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Valero Energy Corporation will post 28.37 earnings per share for the current year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 21st were paid a $1.20 dividend. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 21st. Valero Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 34.88%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on VLO. UBS Group restated a "buy" rating and issued a $280.00 target price on shares of Valero Energy in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $246.00 to $259.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $261.00 to $279.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Raymond James Financial upped their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $215.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 25th. Finally, Zacks Research cut shares of Valero Energy from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $247.59.

Insider Activity at Valero Energy

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

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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