19,012 Shares in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) Acquired by Woodline Partners LP

Woodline Partners LP purchased a new stake in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 19,012 shares of the oil and gas company's stock, valued at approximately $2,331,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in VLO. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. grew its stake in Valero Energy by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 123,356 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $14,751,000 after acquiring an additional 455 shares during the period. Patten Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Valero Energy in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $277,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Valero Energy by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 10,701,232 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $1,311,864,000 after purchasing an additional 413,963 shares in the last quarter. Private Management Group Inc. raised its holdings in Valero Energy by 7.4% during the 4th quarter. Private Management Group Inc. now owns 372,451 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $45,659,000 after buying an additional 25,600 shares during the period. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Valero Energy by 23.0% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 16,056 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $1,920,000 after buying an additional 3,004 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.69% of the company's stock.

Valero Energy Stock Performance

Shares of VLO stock traded down $3.86 on Wednesday, reaching $126.85. The stock had a trading volume of 3,123,225 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,036,990. Valero Energy Co. has a 12 month low of $99.00 and a 12 month high of $167.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $39.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.96, a P/E/G ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.98. The firm's 50-day moving average is $121.01 and its two-hundred day moving average is $128.42. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The oil and gas company reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.16 by ($0.27). The business had revenue of $28.76 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $28.54 billion. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 9.58% and a net margin of 2.13%. The business's revenue was down 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.82 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Valero Energy Co. will post 7.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 20th will be issued a $1.13 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 20th. This represents a $4.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.56%. Valero Energy's dividend payout ratio is presently 159.72%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Scotiabank lowered their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $156.00 to $136.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on Valero Energy from $144.00 to $140.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 9th. Tudor Pickering upgraded Valero Energy from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. TD Cowen decreased their price objective on Valero Energy from $121.00 to $118.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Raymond James cut their target price on Valero Energy from $165.00 to $155.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $151.93.

Valero Energy Company Profile

Valero Energy Corporation manufactures, markets, and sells petroleum-based and low-carbon liquid transportation fuels and petrochemical products in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Latin America, Mexico, Peru, and internationally. It operates through three segments: Refining, Renewable Diesel, and Ethanol.