Rice Partnership LLC Acquires New Shares in Valero Energy Corporation $VLO

Key Points

• Rice Partnership LLC initiated a new position in Valero Energy, buying 32,644 shares worth about $8.1 million in the first quarter. The stake makes up roughly 1.1% of the firm’s portfolio.
• Valero reported strong first-quarter earnings, posting EPS of $4.22 versus the $3.16 estimate and revenue of $32.38 billion, while quarterly revenue rose 7% year over year. Analysts now expect the company to generate 32.61 EPS for the full year.
• The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $1.20 per share, implying an annualized payout of $4.80 and a dividend yield of 1.5%. Meanwhile, analysts hold a consensus rating of Moderate Buy with an average target price of $253.06.

Rice Partnership LLC bought a new position in Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 32,644 shares of the oil and gas company's stock, valued at approximately $8,066,000. Valero Energy makes up approximately 1.1% of Rice Partnership LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest holding.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Valero Energy in the 4th quarter worth about $1,111,542,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership bought a new position in Valero Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at about $275,239,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Valero Energy by 2,635.7% during the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 950,527 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $154,736,000 after acquiring an additional 915,782 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 49.3% during the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,696,811 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $276,224,000 after acquiring an additional 560,116 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 7.5% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 5,668,210 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $922,728,000 after acquiring an additional 394,693 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.69% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Eric A. Fisher sold 7,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction 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 owned 19,742 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,294,212.14. The trade was a 27.53% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.36% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Valero Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:VLO opened at $313.68 on Tuesday. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $260.29 and its 200-day moving average price is $230.82. Valero Energy Corporation has a twelve month low of $130.78 and a twelve month high of $316.57. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The stock has a market capitalization of $93.14 billion, a PE ratio of 22.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.37 and a beta of 0.55.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO - Get Free Report) last announced its 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. Valero Energy had a net margin of 3.37% and a return on equity of 15.94%. The company had revenue of $32.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.38 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.89 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Valero Energy Corporation will post 32.61 EPS for the current year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 31st will be paid a dividend of $1.20 per share. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 31st. Valero Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 34.88%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $276.00 to $292.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, June 29th. Wolfe Research restated an "underperform" rating and issued a $203.00 target price on shares of Valero Energy in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $236.00 to $263.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. Scotiabank boosted their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $178.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut Valero Energy from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Valero Energy has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $253.06.

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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