Teacher Retirement System of Texas Buys 88,556 Shares of Valero Energy Corporation $VLO

Key Points

• Teacher Retirement System of Texas boosted its stake in Valero by 183.2% in Q4, buying an additional 88,556 shares to hold 136,906 shares worth about $22.29 million.
• Valero recently beat quarterly expectations with EPS of $3.82 (vs. $3.27 est.) and revenue of $30.37 billion (vs. $28.20 billion est.), and analysts now rate the stock a consensus "Moderate Buy" with an average price target of about $230.65 amid several raised targets.

Teacher Retirement System of Texas increased its stake in shares of Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO - Free Report) by 183.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 136,906 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after purchasing an additional 88,556 shares during the quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas' holdings in Valero Energy were worth $22,287,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Woodline Partners LP grew its position in Valero Energy by 40.7% in the 1st quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 26,747 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $3,532,000 after acquiring an additional 7,735 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC grew its position in Valero Energy by 13.0% in the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,929 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $259,000 after acquiring an additional 222 shares during the last quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL bought a new position in Valero Energy in the 2nd quarter valued at $528,000. Sei Investments Co. grew its position in Valero Energy by 11.3% in the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 269,043 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $36,165,000 after acquiring an additional 27,291 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Treasurer of the State of North Carolina grew its position in Valero Energy by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 145,810 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $19,600,000 after acquiring an additional 1,338 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.69% of the company's stock.

Valero Energy Price Performance

VLO opened at $235.66 on Friday. Valero Energy Corporation has a 12-month low of $112.00 and a 12-month high of $258.43. The company has a current ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $228.55 and its 200-day simple moving average is $193.93. The company has a market capitalization of $70.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.85, a PEG ratio of 0.46 and a beta of 0.62.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The oil and gas company reported $3.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.27 by $0.55. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 12.35% and a net margin of 1.91%.The business had revenue of $30.37 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $28.20 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.64 EPS. The business's revenue was down 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Valero Energy Corporation will post 19.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on the company. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Valero Energy from $230.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, April 6th. Scotiabank upped their price objective on Valero Energy from $178.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Valero Energy in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Wolfe Research reaffirmed an "underperform" rating and issued a $203.00 price objective on shares of Valero Energy in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Argus raised Valero Energy to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Valero Energy presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $230.65.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Eric A. Fisher sold 8,311 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.69, for a total transaction of $1,892,331.59. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 42,242 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,618,080.98. This represents a 16.44% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.36% of the company's stock.

Key Valero Energy News

Here are the key news stories impacting Valero Energy this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks Research upgraded VLO from "hold" to "strong-buy," giving the stock a favorable analyst vote that can support further buying interest. Zacks Upgrade
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts at Zacks and other outlets preview VLO’s upcoming earnings and flag that Valero has the key ingredients for a likely earnings beat (strong refining margins, stable throughput expectations), which tends to lift sentiment into the print. Earnings Preview
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage pieces note VLO is a "trending" stock on investor platforms — increased attention can boost volume and volatility but is not a directional catalyst by itself. Trending Article
• Neutral Sentiment: Reminder: Valero is scheduled to report quarterly results shortly; timing and any guidance/comments on margins and throughput will likely be the primary near-term driver. Earnings Date Note
• Negative Sentiment: Morgan Stanley raised its price target to $222 but kept an "equal weight" rating — the $222 TP is below the current market level, implying downside versus today's price and signaling limited upside from this shop. Morgan Stanley Note
• Negative Sentiment: Wolfe Research reiterated an "Underperform" rating, which could pressure sentiment among more cautious institutional holders and add selling pressure if the earnings print disappoints. Wolfe Research

About Valero Energy

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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