Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) Shares Purchased by Focus Partners Wealth

Focus Partners Wealth increased its holdings in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO - Free Report) by 68.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 34,199 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after purchasing an additional 13,915 shares during the quarter. Focus Partners Wealth's holdings in Valero Energy were worth $4,222,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in VLO. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of 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 worth $14,751,000 after purchasing an additional 455 shares during the last quarter. Hudson Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 6.5% in the fourth quarter. Hudson Capital Management LLC now owns 31,792 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $3,897,000 after purchasing an additional 1,937 shares during the last quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Valero Energy in the fourth quarter worth approximately $274,000. Patten Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Valero Energy in the fourth quarter worth approximately $277,000. Finally, Occidental Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Valero Energy in the fourth quarter worth approximately $319,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.69% of the company's stock.

Valero Energy Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of NYSE VLO traded up $0.39 during trading on Friday, reaching $135.76. The stock had a trading volume of 2,252,609 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,032,204. Valero Energy Co. has a fifty-two week low of $99.00 and a fifty-two week high of $167.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.57. The business's 50-day moving average price is $121.08 and its 200-day moving average price is $128.57. The company has a market cap of $42.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.01, a PEG ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.98.

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

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 20th will be paid a $1.13 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 20th. This represents a $4.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.33%. Valero Energy's payout ratio is presently 159.72%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on VLO. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $160.00 to $159.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $140.00 to $141.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Valero Energy from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $127.00 to $154.00 in a report on Tuesday. Piper Sandler cut their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $144.00 to $140.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, TD Cowen cut their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $121.00 to $118.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 25th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus 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.