MQS Management LLC Takes $919,000 Position in Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO)

MQS Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 6,956 shares of the oil and gas company's stock, valued at approximately $919,000. Valero Energy accounts for about 0.5% of MQS Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 18th biggest holding.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 16.1% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 34,725,700 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $4,257,024,000 after purchasing an additional 4,805,133 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 5.7% in the fourth quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 7,938,335 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $973,119,000 after purchasing an additional 429,252 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,871,229 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $844,775,000 after purchasing an additional 100,248 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Valero Energy in the fourth quarter worth approximately $669,400,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in Valero Energy by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 4,759,172 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $583,427,000 after acquiring an additional 71,587 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.69% of the company's stock.

Valero Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE VLO traded down $4.07 on Monday, hitting $148.98. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,626,768 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,086,633. Valero Energy Corporation has a 12-month low of $99.00 and a 12-month high of $167.78. The company has a market capitalization of $46.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 52.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 1.00. 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 stock has a 50 day moving average of $133.97 and a 200-day moving average of $129.31.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The oil and gas company reported $0.89 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.16 by ($0.27). Valero Energy had a net margin of 0.72% and a return on equity of 6.30%. The firm had revenue of $28.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $28.54 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.82 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Valero Energy Corporation will post 7.92 EPS for the current year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 20th were paid a $1.13 dividend. This represents a $4.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 20th. Valero Energy's payout ratio is 159.72%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VLO has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $160.00 to $145.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Mizuho boosted their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $158.00 to $166.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $152.00 to $147.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $142.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Scotiabank dropped their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $156.00 to $136.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $153.56.

About Valero Energy

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.