New York State Common Retirement Fund Boosts Holdings in Valvoline (NYSE:VVV)

New York State Common Retirement Fund boosted its holdings in Valvoline (NYSE:VVV - Free Report) by 125.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 538,065 shares of the basic materials company's stock after acquiring an additional 299,812 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund owned about 0.42% of Valvoline worth $18,730,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Valvoline by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,893,648 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $466,492,000 after acquiring an additional 101,834 shares during the period. Wasatch Advisors LP boosted its holdings in Valvoline by 11.1% during the fourth quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 10,818,256 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $391,405,000 after buying an additional 1,080,114 shares in the last quarter. Fiduciary Management Inc. WI boosted its holdings in Valvoline by 35.1% during the fourth quarter. Fiduciary Management Inc. WI now owns 4,221,275 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $152,726,000 after buying an additional 1,096,486 shares in the last quarter. Alua Capital Management LP grew its position in Valvoline by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. Alua Capital Management LP now owns 3,605,281 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $130,439,000 after purchasing an additional 175,848 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in Valvoline by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,608,067 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $94,362,000 after purchasing an additional 6,871 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.13% of the company's stock.

Valvoline Price Performance

Shares of VVV stock traded up $0.18 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $36.41. 1,257,788 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,538,762. Valvoline has a fifty-two week low of $31.02 and a fifty-two week high of $47.08. The stock's fifty day moving average is $36.46 and its two-hundred day moving average is $35.93. The company has a market cap of $4.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.67 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.23, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.60.

Valvoline (NYSE:VVV - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The basic materials company reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.36 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $403.20 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $405.38 million. Valvoline had a net margin of 15.97% and a return on equity of 106.36%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.37 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Valvoline will post 1.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VVV has been the subject of a number of research reports. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Valvoline from $41.00 to $39.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 9th. TD Securities began coverage on shares of Valvoline in a research note on Friday, April 4th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $40.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Valvoline from $44.00 to $42.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of Valvoline from $41.00 to $38.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 29th. Finally, TD Cowen began coverage on shares of Valvoline in a research note on Friday, April 4th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $40.00 price objective for the company. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $42.54.

Insider Buying and Selling at Valvoline

In other news, CEO Lori Ann Flees acquired 3,000 shares of Valvoline stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $33.78 per share, for a total transaction of $101,340.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 46,614 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,574,620.92. This represents a 6.88% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.66% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Valvoline

Valvoline Inc engages in the operation and franchising of vehicle service centers and retail stores in the United States and Canada. The company, through its service centers, provides fluid exchange for motor oil, transmission and differential fluid, and coolant; parts replacement for batteries, filters, wiper blades, and belts; and safety services, such as tire inflation and rotation, bulbs, and safety checks.