Valero Energy Corporation $VLO Stock: Park Avenue Securities LLC Raises Holdings

Key Points

• Park Avenue Securities increased its Valero Energy position by 24.6% in the third quarter, ending with 23,187 shares valued at approximately $8.99 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 78.69% of VLO.
• Valero reported exceptionally strong quarterly results, with EPS of $23.90 beating estimates by $2.73 and revenue of $46.10 billion exceeding forecasts; revenue rose 43.3% year over year.
• Analysts maintain a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating with an average price target of $379.94, while Valero maintained its quarterly dividend at $1.20 per share, or $4.80 annually.

Park Avenue Securities LLC raised its position in shares of Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO - Free Report) by 24.6% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 23,187 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after acquiring an additional 4,583 shares during the period. Park Avenue Securities LLC's holdings in Valero Energy were worth $8,987,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in VLO. Blue Zone Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Valero Energy by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Zone Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,027 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $398,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Grove Bank & Trust grew its holdings in Valero Energy by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 2,608 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $1,011,000 after buying an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Sigma Planning Corp grew its holdings in Valero Energy by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Sigma Planning Corp now owns 7,171 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $2,779,000 after buying an additional 29 shares in the last quarter. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC increased its position in Valero Energy by 57.6% during the 2nd quarter. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC now owns 104 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 38 shares during the period. Finally, V Square Quantitative Management LLC increased its position in Valero Energy by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 6,670 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $1,648,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.69% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VLO has been the subject of a number of research reports. Bank of America lifted their target price on Valero Energy from $395.00 to $414.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, October 2nd. TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $375.00 to $400.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. UBS Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $467.00 price target on shares of Valero Energy in a research report on Tuesday, October 6th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Valero Energy from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b+)" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $485.00 to $489.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, October 23rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $379.94.

Key Headlines Impacting Valero Energy

Here are the key news stories impacting Valero Energy this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Valero maintained its quarterly dividend at $1.20 per share, payable December 21 to shareholders of record November 24. The annualized payout is $4.80 per share, supporting the stock’s income appeal. Valero dividend announcement
• Positive Sentiment: Valero’s latest earnings were exceptionally strong, with quarterly EPS of approximately $23.90 beating consensus and revenue exceeding estimates. The results represented a substantial improvement from the prior-year period, indicating powerful refining economics. Refiner stocks selloff article
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks recently included VLO among its Rank #1 growth stocks, citing strong momentum, earnings surprises and growth projections. Zacks growth stocks article

Valero Energy Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of NYSE:VLO opened at $388.39 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $111.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.74, a P/E/G ratio of 0.24 and a beta of 0.59. Valero Energy Corporation has a 1 year low of $159.90 and a 1 year high of $461.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 1.64 and a quick ratio of 1.23. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $395.69 and its 200 day simple moving average is $282.96.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 22nd. The oil and gas company reported $23.90 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $21.17 by $2.73. The firm had revenue of $46.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $42.71 billion. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 47.50% and a net margin of 8.44%. The company's revenue was up 43.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.66 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Valero Energy Corporation will post 56.78 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 21st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 24th will be issued a dividend of $1.20 per share. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 24th. Valero Energy's dividend payout ratio is 10.80%.

Valero Energy Profile

Valero Energy Corporation is an international energy company headquartered in San Antonio, Texas. The company's primary business is refining and marketing transportation fuels, including gasoline, diesel, jet fuel and other products used by commercial, industrial and consumer customers.

Valero operates refineries in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. Its refining operations also produce asphalt, petrochemical feedstocks and other petroleum-based products. The company markets fuel through wholesale channels and branded retail networks, including Valero, Beacon and Shamrock-branded locations.

In addition to conventional refining, Valero has businesses focused on renewable fuels.

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