NBC Securities Inc. Boosts Position in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

NBC Securities Inc. grew its position in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO - Free Report) by 102,500.0% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 4,104 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after purchasing an additional 4,100 shares during the quarter. NBC Securities Inc.'s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $542,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of VLO. World Investment Advisors lifted its holdings in Valero Energy by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 4,323 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $530,000 after buying an additional 78 shares during the period. Silver Coast Investments LLC lifted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Silver Coast Investments LLC now owns 5,070 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $622,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the period. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators boosted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 6.6% during the 4th quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 1,514 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $186,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares in the last quarter. Providence Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Valero Energy by 1.1% in 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 in the last quarter. Finally, KCM Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Valero Energy by 1.8% in 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 in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.69% of the company's stock.

Valero Energy Stock Performance

Valero Energy stock traded up $1.47 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $128.35. 2,606,350 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,029,419. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $120.42 and its 200 day simple moving average is $127.94. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. Valero Energy Co. has a one year low of $99.00 and a one year high of $167.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.20 billion, a PE ratio of 15.14, a P/E/G ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.99.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The oil and gas company reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.16 by ($0.27). The business had revenue of $28.76 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $28.54 billion. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 9.58% and a net margin of 2.13%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.82 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Valero Energy Co. will post 7.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 20th will be paid a $1.13 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 20th. This represents a $4.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.52%. Valero Energy's payout ratio is 159.72%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently commented on VLO. Scotiabank reduced their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $156.00 to $136.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 11th. TD Cowen reduced their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $121.00 to $118.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 25th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $160.00 to $150.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 28th. Raymond James reduced their target price on Valero Energy from $165.00 to $155.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Piper Sandler dropped their price target on Valero Energy from $144.00 to $140.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $151.93.

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.