The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Sells 13,120 Shares of Valero Energy Corporation $VLO

Key Points

• The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company reduced its Valero Energy stake by 2.2%, selling 13,120 shares and retaining 594,472 shares valued at approximately $154.8 million. Institutional investors collectively own 78.69% of VLO.
• Valero reported quarterly EPS of $12.54, beating estimates by $2.43, while revenue rose 48.8% year over year to $44.48 billion. The company also maintains a $1.20 quarterly dividend, yielding about 1.2% annually.
• VLO opened at $385.92, near its 52-week high of $393.54. Analysts maintain a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating, although the average price target of $301.76 is below the current share price.

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company reduced its stake in Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO - Free Report) by 2.2% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 594,472 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after selling 13,120 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned approximately 0.21% of Valero Energy worth $154,824,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of VLO. Sierra Summit Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Valero Energy by 2,325.2% in the fourth quarter. Sierra Summit Advisors LLC now owns 36,378 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $5,922,000 after acquiring an additional 34,878 shares during the period. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 846.9% in the 4th quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 14,752 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $2,401,000 after purchasing an additional 13,194 shares during the period. North Dakota State Investment Board bought a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,743,000. Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH increased its holdings in Valero Energy by 4.2% during the first quarter. Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH now owns 192,430 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $47,546,000 after buying an additional 7,702 shares during the period. Finally, Dymon Asia Capital Singapore PTE. LTD. purchased a new position in Valero Energy during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,268,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.69% of the company's stock.

Valero Energy Price Performance

Shares of VLO stock opened at $385.92 on Friday. Valero Energy Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $155.29 and a fifty-two week high of $393.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a current ratio of 1.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $111.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.01, a PEG ratio of 0.44 and a beta of 0.57. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $324.54 and its 200-day simple moving average is $270.47.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The oil and gas company reported $12.54 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $10.11 by $2.43. The company had revenue of $44.48 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $39.47 billion. Valero Energy had a net margin of 5.17% and a return on equity of 26.74%. Valero Energy's revenue for the quarter was up 48.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.28 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Valero Energy Corporation will post 41.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 31st were issued a dividend of $1.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 31st. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. Valero Energy's payout ratio is 19.92%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have weighed in on VLO shares. Barclays upped their target price on Valero Energy from $279.00 to $323.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on Valero Energy from $286.00 to $357.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Zacks Research upgraded Valero Energy from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. TD Cowen lifted their target price on Valero Energy from $338.00 to $350.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $355.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $301.76.

Insider Buying and Selling at Valero Energy

In related news, SVP Eric Fisher sold 7,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $268.17, for a total value of $2,011,275.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 19,742 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,294,212.14. This represents a 27.53% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.36% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Valero Energy Profile

Valero Energy Corporation is an international energy company headquartered in San Antonio, Texas. Its primary business is refining crude oil into transportation fuels and other products, including gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, asphalt, lubricants and petrochemical feedstocks.

Valero operates refineries and related facilities in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom, and markets its products through wholesale and commercial channels in North America and other international markets.

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