Sound Income Strategies LLC Purchases 2,982 Shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Sound Income Strategies LLC raised its stake in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO - Free Report) by 3.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 97,874 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after buying an additional 2,982 shares during the quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC's holdings in Valero Energy were worth $12,926,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 9.1% during the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 223,016 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $27,340,000 after purchasing an additional 18,623 shares in the last quarter. Avestar Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 7.9% during the fourth quarter. Avestar Capital LLC now owns 1,850 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $227,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares in the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 123,356 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $14,751,000 after purchasing an additional 455 shares in the last quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC grew its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 10.8% during the fourth quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 1,027 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $126,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vontobel Holding Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 13.4% during the fourth quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 11,529 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $1,413,000 after purchasing an additional 1,359 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.69% of the company's stock.

Valero Energy Trading Up 0.4%

VLO stock traded up $0.54 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $134.04. The company had a trading volume of 3,758,276 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,036,156. The company has a current ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. Valero Energy Co. has a 52 week low of $99.00 and a 52 week high of $167.78. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $122.26 and its 200 day moving average price is $127.48. The stock has a market cap of $41.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.81, a PEG ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.99.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The oil and gas company reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.16 by ($0.27). The business had revenue of $28.76 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $28.54 billion. Valero Energy had a net margin of 2.13% and a return on equity of 9.58%. Valero Energy's revenue was down 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.82 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Valero Energy Co. will post 7.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 20th will be issued a dividend of $1.13 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 20th. This represents a $4.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.37%. Valero Energy's dividend payout ratio is presently 159.72%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Raymond James cut their price objective on Valero Energy from $165.00 to $155.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. TD Cowen cut their target price on Valero Energy from $121.00 to $118.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Barclays upped their target price on Valero Energy from $140.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Mizuho upped their target price on Valero Energy from $158.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Finally, Piper Sandler cut their target price on Valero Energy from $144.00 to $140.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Valero Energy has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $151.93.

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.