Valero Energy Corporation $VLO is Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc.'s 10th Largest Position

Key Points

• Montrusco Bolton Investments cut its Valero Energy stake by 15% in the first quarter, but VLO remains its 10th-largest holding at 3.5% of the portfolio.
• Valero posted better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $4.22 versus the $3.16 estimate and revenue of $32.38 billion, up 7% from a year earlier.
• The company also paid a quarterly dividend of $1.20 per share and has seen mixed but generally positive analyst sentiment, with an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $247.59.

Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. reduced its position in Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO - Free Report) by 15.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 936,233 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after selling 164,679 shares during the period. Valero Energy makes up about 3.5% of Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest position. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. owned approximately 0.31% of Valero Energy worth $231,324,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of VLO. State Street Corp boosted its position in Valero Energy by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 18,177,191 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $2,959,065,000 after purchasing an additional 163,975 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Valero Energy by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 11,950,982 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $1,945,500,000 after purchasing an additional 63,919 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,111,542,000. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 7.5% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 5,668,210 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $922,728,000 after purchasing an additional 394,693 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,285,161 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $534,791,000 after buying an additional 17,336 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.69% of the company's stock.

Valero Energy Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of Valero Energy stock opened at $267.99 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $249.73 and a 200-day moving average price of $220.63. Valero Energy Corporation has a twelve month low of $130.78 and a twelve month high of $274.92. The firm has a market cap of $79.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.48, a PEG ratio of 0.37 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The oil and gas company reported $4.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.16 by $1.06. The business had revenue of $32.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $31.38 billion. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 15.94% and a net margin of 3.37%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.89 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Valero Energy Corporation will post 28.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 23rd. Investors of record on Thursday, May 21st were paid a dividend of $1.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 21st. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.8%. Valero Energy's dividend payout ratio is presently 34.88%.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on VLO. Mizuho upped their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $222.00 to $289.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Valero Energy from a "hold (c)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Barclays upped their price objective on Valero Energy from $261.00 to $279.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Valero Energy from $203.00 to $237.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, March 12th. Finally, UBS Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $280.00 price objective on shares of Valero Energy in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $247.59.

Valero Energy Company Profile

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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