Strait & Sound Wealth Management LLC Raises Holdings in Valero Energy Corporation $VLO

Key Points

• Strait & Sound Wealth Management LLC has increased its stake in Valero Energy Corporation by 43.6% to hold 5,625 shares valued at $743,000.
• Valero Energy reported $2.28 earnings per share for the most recent quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations of $1.66, despite a 13.3% year-over-year revenue decline.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $1.13 per share, equating to an annual yield of 2.9%, with a high dividend payout ratio of 188.33%.

Strait & Sound Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO - Free Report) by 43.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 5,625 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,708 shares during the quarter. Strait & Sound Wealth Management LLC's holdings in Valero Energy were worth $743,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Hamilton Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 25.2% during the 1st quarter. Hamilton Capital LLC now owns 2,080 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $275,000 after acquiring an additional 418 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in Valero Energy by 5.7% during the 1st quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 7,548 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $997,000 after purchasing an additional 409 shares during the last quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd lifted its holdings in Valero Energy by 2.2% during the 1st quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd now owns 27,587 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $3,643,000 after purchasing an additional 600 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 43.8% during the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 38,343 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $5,064,000 after buying an additional 11,685 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 3.3% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 58,722 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $7,755,000 after buying an additional 1,854 shares in the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently commented on VLO shares. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Valero Energy from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Citigroup lowered Valero Energy from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $134.00 to $150.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on Valero Energy from $171.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday. TD Cowen lowered Valero Energy from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $118.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Evercore ISI began coverage on Valero Energy in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. They issued an "in-line" rating and a $135.00 price objective on the stock. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $158.87.

Valero Energy Trading Down 0.5%

VLO traded down $0.81 during trading on Friday, hitting $156.78. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,642,612 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,390,270. Valero Energy Corporation has a twelve month low of $99.00 and a twelve month high of $163.02. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $145.24 and its 200-day moving average price is $132.87. The firm has a market capitalization of $48.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 65.33, a PEG ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.10.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The oil and gas company reported $2.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.66 by $0.62. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 5.76% and a net margin of 0.62%.The firm had revenue of $29.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $27 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.71 earnings per share. The company's revenue was down 13.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Valero Energy Corporation will post 7.92 EPS for the current year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 31st were paid a $1.13 dividend. This represents a $4.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 31st. Valero Energy's dividend payout ratio is 188.33%.

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.