Valero Energy Corporation $VLO Shares Sold by Measured Risk Portfolios Inc.

Key Points

• Measured Risk Portfolios cut its Valero Energy stake by 90.6% in the first quarter, selling 9,050 shares and retaining 934 shares valued at approximately $231,000. Institutional investors collectively own 78.69% of VLO.
• Valero reported first-quarter EPS of $4.22, beating estimates of $3.16, while revenue rose 7% year over year to $32.38 billion. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $1.20, equivalent to a 1.6% yield.
• VLO shares opened at $304.99, near their 52-week high of $320.24. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus, with an average price target of $266.71, though ratings range from “Strong Buy” to “Sell.”

Measured Risk Portfolios Inc. reduced its position in Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO - Free Report) by 90.6% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 934 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after selling 9,050 shares during the quarter. Measured Risk Portfolios Inc.'s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $231,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of VLO. V Square Quantitative Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 0.6% in the 1st quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 6,670 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $1,648,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC lifted its stake in Valero Energy by 5.5% during the fourth quarter. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC now owns 975 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $159,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC lifted its stake in Valero Energy by 32.9% during the fourth quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 206 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Providence Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Valero Energy by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Providence Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 9,610 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $1,564,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the period. Finally, KPP Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in Valero Energy by 2.5% during the first quarter. KPP Advisory Services LLC now owns 2,156 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $533,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.69% of the company's stock.

Valero Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE VLO opened at $304.99 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 1.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $90.56 billion, a PE ratio of 22.16, a P/E/G ratio of 0.20 and a beta of 0.55. Valero Energy Corporation has a 1-year low of $130.78 and a 1-year high of $320.24. The business's fifty day moving average price is $266.16 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $235.67.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The oil and gas company reported $4.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.16 by $1.06. The company had revenue of $32.38 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $31.38 billion. Valero Energy had a net margin of 3.37% and a return on equity of 15.94%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.89 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Valero Energy Corporation will post 36.46 EPS for the current year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 31st. Investors of record on Friday, July 31st will be given a $1.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 31st. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.6%. Valero Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 34.88%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. Scotiabank increased their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $178.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Valero Energy from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Thursday. Raymond James Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $300.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Wolfe Research reiterated an "underperform" rating and set a $203.00 price objective on shares of Valero Energy in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Zacks Research cut shares of Valero Energy from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, June 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Valero Energy currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $266.71.

Insider Transactions at Valero Energy

In other Valero Energy news, SVP Eric A. Fisher sold 7,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $268.17, for a total transaction 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. The trade was a 27.53% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.36% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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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