Valero Energy Corporation $VLO Shares Bought by KBC Group NV

Key Points

• KBC Group NV increased its stake in Valero by 135.5% in Q4, buying an additional 41,797 shares to hold 72,651 shares worth about $11.83 million.
• Several analysts have upgraded Valero recently (including Piper Sandler, Goldman Sachs and Scotiabank), leaving a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $230.
• Valero raised its quarterly dividend to $1.20 (annualized $4.80, ~2.1% yield); shares opened at $223.79 and were reported down about 7.4%, with a market cap near $66.9 billion and a P/E around 29.3.

KBC Group NV grew its holdings in shares of Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO - Free Report) by 135.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 72,651 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after purchasing an additional 41,797 shares during the period. KBC Group NV's holdings in Valero Energy were worth $11,827,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. JPL Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of 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 bought a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at about $34,000. Triumph Capital Management bought a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of 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 own 78.69% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $236.00 to $263.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Valero Energy from $203.00 to $237.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, March 12th. Wall Street Zen raised Valero Energy from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday, April 4th. Scotiabank raised Valero Energy to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 27th. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on Valero Energy from $212.00 to $246.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $230.00.

Valero Energy Trading Down 7.4%

Shares of NYSE VLO opened at $223.79 on Friday. Valero Energy Corporation has a 12 month low of $106.83 and a 12 month high of $258.43. The company has a market cap of $66.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.29, a P/E/G ratio of 0.50 and a beta of 0.62. 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 has a fifty day simple moving average of $225.31 and a 200-day simple moving average of $191.74.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The oil and gas company reported $3.82 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.27 by $0.55. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 12.35% and a net margin of 1.91%.The business had revenue of $30.37 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $28.20 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.64 earnings per share. Valero Energy's revenue was down 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Valero Energy Corporation will post 7.92 EPS for the current year.

Valero Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 9th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 5th were paid a $1.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 5th. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. This is an increase from Valero Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $1.13. Valero Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 62.83%.

Insider Transactions at Valero Energy

In related news, SVP Eric A. Fisher sold 400 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $238.60, for a total value of $95,440.00. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.36% of the company's stock.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.