Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. Boosts Stock Position in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO - Free Report) by 1,995.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 6,432 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after purchasing an additional 6,125 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $849,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 16.1% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 34,725,700 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $4,257,024,000 after acquiring an additional 4,805,133 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Valero Energy by 4.0% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 10,701,232 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $1,311,864,000 after purchasing an additional 413,963 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its position in Valero Energy by 5.7% during the fourth quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 7,938,335 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $973,119,000 after purchasing an additional 429,252 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,871,229 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $844,775,000 after acquiring an additional 100,248 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $669,400,000. Institutional investors own 78.69% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Valero Energy from $160.00 to $145.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Scotiabank cut their price target on Valero Energy from $156.00 to $136.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 11th. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on Valero Energy from $144.00 to $140.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Raymond James lowered their price target on Valero Energy from $165.00 to $155.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price objective on Valero Energy from $160.00 to $150.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 28th. Two equities research 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's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $151.93.

Valero Energy Price Performance

NYSE:VLO traded up $0.54 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $134.04. 3,758,276 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,036,156. Valero Energy Co. has a 52-week low of $99.00 and a 52-week high of $167.78. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $122.26 and its 200 day moving average price is $127.48. The company has a current ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The company has a market cap of $41.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.81, a P/E/G ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.99.

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

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

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

Valero Energy Company 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.