Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. Decreases Position in Valero Energy Corporation $VLO

Key Points

• Resona Asset Management trimmed its Valero Energy stake by 4.6% in the fourth quarter, selling 4,643 shares and leaving it with 96,047 shares valued at about $15.7 million.
• Valero reported strong quarterly results, posting EPS of $4.22 versus expectations of $3.16 and revenue of $32.38 billion, both above analyst estimates.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $1.20 per share, with an annualized payout of $4.80 and a dividend yield of 1.9%; analysts currently rate the stock a Moderate Buy with an average price target of $237.94.

Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. decreased its stake in Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO - Free Report) by 4.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 96,047 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after selling 4,643 shares during the period. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd.'s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $15,686,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Montecito Bank & Trust boosted its holdings in Valero Energy by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Montecito Bank & Trust now owns 3,909 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $636,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Waddell & Associates LLC boosted its holdings in Valero Energy by 2.8% in the third quarter. Waddell & Associates LLC now owns 2,040 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $347,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. DSG Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Valero Energy by 1.6% in the third quarter. DSG Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,803 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $647,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. River Street Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Valero Energy by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. River Street Advisors LLC now owns 12,107 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $1,971,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Childress Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Valero Energy by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Childress Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,945 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $479,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.69% of the company's stock.

Valero Energy Stock Performance

VLO stock opened at $254.01 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.58, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The firm has a market cap of $75.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.46, a P/E/G ratio of 0.36 and a beta of 0.58. Valero Energy Corporation has a 12-month low of $125.10 and a 12-month high of $263.75. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $241.10 and its 200 day simple moving average is $203.74.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The oil and gas company reported $4.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.16 by $1.06. The business had revenue of $32.38 billion for 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 business's revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.89 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Valero Energy Corporation will post 28.26 EPS for the current year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 23rd. Investors of record on Thursday, May 21st will be given a dividend of $1.20 per share. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 21st. Valero Energy's dividend payout ratio is currently 34.88%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VLO has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Piper Sandler increased their price target on Valero Energy from $236.00 to $263.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. TD Cowen increased their price target on Valero Energy from $255.00 to $276.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on Valero Energy from $203.00 to $237.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, March 12th. Wolfe Research reissued an "underperform" rating and issued a $203.00 price target on shares of Valero Energy in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Valero Energy from $182.00 to $222.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Valero Energy currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $237.94.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Eric A. Fisher sold 400 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $238.60, for a total transaction of $95,440.00. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.36% of the company's stock.

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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