Valero Energy Corporation $VLO Shares Acquired by Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY

Key Points

• 199.8% stake increase by Miller Howard Investments in Q4 — it bought 16,504 shares to hold 24,766 shares of Valero, valued at about $4.03 million.
• Valero beat Q4 estimates, reporting EPS of $3.82 versus $3.27 expected and revenue of $30.37 billion versus $28.20 billion.
• Valero raised its quarterly dividend to $1.20 (annualized $4.80), up from $1.13, implying a yield of 2.1% and a payout ratio of about 62.8%.

Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY increased its stake in Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO - Free Report) by 199.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 24,766 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after buying an additional 16,504 shares during the quarter. Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY's holdings in Valero Energy were worth $4,032,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Valero Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC grew its stake in Valero Energy by 70.2% during the 3rd quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 160 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. Cypress Capital Management LLC WY acquired a new stake in Valero Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Triumph Capital Management acquired a new stake in Valero Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Valero Energy by 145.3% during the 3rd quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 211 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.69% of the company's stock.

Valero Energy Trading Up 0.1%

NYSE:VLO opened at $223.79 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The business's 50 day moving average is $225.31 and its two-hundred day moving average is $191.91. Valero Energy Corporation has a 52 week low of $106.83 and a 52 week high of $258.43. The company has a market cap of $66.92 billion, a PE ratio of 29.29, a P/E/G ratio of 0.46 and a beta of 0.62.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The oil and gas company reported $3.82 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 company had revenue of $30.37 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $28.20 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.64 EPS. Valero Energy's quarterly revenue was down 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Valero Energy Corporation will post 7.92 EPS for the current year.

Valero Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 9th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 5th were issued a dividend of $1.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 5th. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. This is a boost from Valero Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $1.13. Valero Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 62.83%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Valero Energy news, SVP Eric A. Fisher sold 8,311 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 $9,618,080.98. This trade represents a 16.44% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.36% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VLO has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Citigroup raised their price objective on Valero Energy from $212.00 to $246.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Barclays raised their price objective on Valero Energy from $184.00 to $261.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Valero Energy from $197.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Valero Energy from $220.00 to $292.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. Finally, Raymond James Financial raised their price objective on Valero Energy from $215.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 25th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Valero Energy presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $230.00.

Valero Energy 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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