Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC Buys 196,580 Shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC grew its stake in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO - Free Report) by 37.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 717,587 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after acquiring an additional 196,580 shares during the period. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC owned 0.23% of Valero Energy worth $87,969,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. William B. Walkup & Associates Inc. raised its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. William B. Walkup & Associates Inc. now owns 73,273 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $8,983,000 after acquiring an additional 184 shares during the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP bought a new position in shares of Valero Energy in the fourth quarter worth about $2,331,000. Vident Advisory LLC raised its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 56.7% in the fourth quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 22,820 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $2,798,000 after acquiring an additional 8,257 shares during the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC grew its position in shares of Valero Energy by 15.9% during the 4th quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 37,349 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $4,579,000 after buying an additional 5,115 shares during the period. Finally, State of Wyoming grew its position in shares of Valero Energy by 11.3% during the 4th quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 1,449 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $178,000 after buying an additional 147 shares during the period. 78.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Valero Energy Stock Performance

Shares of VLO opened at $134.20 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.57. Valero Energy Co. has a twelve month low of $99.00 and a twelve month high of $167.78. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $121.26 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $128.60. The firm has a market cap of $42.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.83, a PEG ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.98.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The oil and gas company reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.16 by ($0.27). The business had revenue of $28.76 billion during 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 for the quarter was down 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.82 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Valero Energy Co. will post 7.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 20th will be given a $1.13 dividend. This represents a $4.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.37%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 20th. Valero Energy's dividend payout ratio is presently 159.72%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VLO has been the subject of several analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Valero Energy from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $127.00 to $154.00 in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $160.00 to $150.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Tudor Pickering upgraded shares of Valero Energy from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Mizuho lifted their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $158.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $152.00 to $147.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Valero Energy presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $151.93.

Valero Energy 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.

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