Oak Thistle LLC Has $1.18 Million Holdings in Valvoline (NYSE:VVV)

Oak Thistle LLC boosted its holdings in Valvoline (NYSE:VVV - Free Report) by 68.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 33,925 shares of the basic materials company's stock after buying an additional 13,808 shares during the quarter. Oak Thistle LLC's holdings in Valvoline were worth $1,181,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in VVV. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC lifted its position in Valvoline by 13.8% in the fourth quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 9,411 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $341,000 after purchasing an additional 1,142 shares during the period. Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new position in Valvoline in the fourth quarter valued at about $314,000. Sei Investments Co. increased its holdings in Valvoline by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 552,660 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $19,995,000 after buying an additional 13,698 shares in the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new position in Valvoline in the fourth quarter valued at about $930,000. Finally, LPL Financial LLC increased its stake in shares of Valvoline by 26.5% during the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 33,872 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,225,000 after purchasing an additional 7,097 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.13% of the company's stock.

Valvoline Trading Up 1.2%

Shares of VVV stock traded up $0.42 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $35.87. 1,654,040 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,851,966. Valvoline has a 1-year low of $31.01 and a 1-year high of $47.08. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $36.62 and a 200 day moving average price of $35.96. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.56 billion, a PE ratio of 17.41 and a beta of 1.18.

Valvoline (NYSE:VVV - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The basic materials company reported $0.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.36 by ($0.02). Valvoline had a return on equity of 106.36% and a net margin of 15.97%. The firm had revenue of $403.20 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $405.38 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.37 earnings per share. Valvoline's quarterly revenue was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Valvoline will post 1.63 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on VVV. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Valvoline from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $40.00 to $45.00 in a research note on Tuesday, June 3rd. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Valvoline from $41.00 to $38.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Valvoline from $41.00 to $39.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 9th. Cfra Research upgraded shares of Valvoline to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, July 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Valvoline from $44.00 to $42.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 28th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $42.54.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Lori Ann Flees acquired 3,000 shares of Valvoline stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $33.78 per share, with a total value of $101,340.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 46,614 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,574,620.92. The trade was a 6.88% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.66% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Valvoline Company Profile

Valvoline Inc engages in the operation and franchising of vehicle service centers and retail stores in the United States and Canada. The company, through its service centers, provides fluid exchange for motor oil, transmission and differential fluid, and coolant; parts replacement for batteries, filters, wiper blades, and belts; and safety services, such as tire inflation and rotation, bulbs, and safety checks.