Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) Price Target Raised to $165.00 at Scotiabank

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO - Free Report) had its price objective boosted by Scotiabank from $138.00 to $165.00 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday morning, Benzinga reports. Scotiabank currently has a sector outperform rating on the oil and gas company's stock.

A number of other analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Citigroup began coverage on shares of Valero Energy in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. They issued a buy rating for the company. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $149.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $130.00 to $171.00 and gave the stock a sell rating in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $161.00 to $198.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $177.00 to $178.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Monday, April 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Valero Energy has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $172.40.

Valero Energy Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of VLO traded up $1.39 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $177.09. The company had a trading volume of 2,414,000 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,426,179. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $154.46 and its 200-day simple moving average is $137.99. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. Valero Energy has a 1-year low of $104.18 and a 1-year high of $184.79. The stock has a market cap of $58.88 billion, a PE ratio of 7.14, a P/E/G ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 1.54.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The oil and gas company reported $3.55 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.95 by $0.60. The firm had revenue of $35.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $34.76 billion. Valero Energy had a net margin of 6.10% and a return on equity of 31.62%. Valero Energy's revenue was down 15.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $8.45 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Valero Energy will post 17.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Valero Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 1st were paid a dividend of $1.07 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, January 31st. This is a positive change from Valero Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. This represents a $4.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.42%. Valero Energy's dividend payout ratio is currently 17.31%.

Institutional Trading of Valero Energy

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Deutsche Bank AG grew its holdings in Valero Energy by 5.8% during the third quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 1,005,346 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $142,468,000 after purchasing an additional 55,351 shares during the last quarter. Stiles Financial Services Inc grew its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 49.7% in the fourth quarter. Stiles Financial Services Inc now owns 7,615 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $991,000 after acquiring an additional 2,529 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 14.0% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 2,788,994 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $362,569,000 after acquiring an additional 342,218 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 645,726 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $83,867,000 after acquiring an additional 18,575 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Public Sector Pension Investment Board grew its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 10.5% in the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 83,290 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $11,803,000 after acquiring an additional 7,910 shares during the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.