PFG Investments LLC Buys 8,688 Shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

PFG Investments LLC raised its stake in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO - Free Report) by 401.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 10,851 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after buying an additional 8,688 shares during the period. PFG Investments LLC's holdings in Valero Energy were worth $1,852,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of VLO. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Valero Energy in the fourth quarter worth about $570,428,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in Valero Energy by 12,883.3% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,047,360 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $136,157,000 after buying an additional 1,039,293 shares in the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC grew its position in Valero Energy by 94.4% during the third quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 1,429,706 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $202,585,000 after buying an additional 694,224 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley grew its position in Valero Energy by 6.1% during the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 8,961,603 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $1,269,949,000 after buying an additional 517,068 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. grew its position in Valero Energy by 18.7% during the fourth quarter. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. now owns 2,389,654 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $310,655,000 after buying an additional 376,449 shares in the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Valero Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:VLO traded down $1.33 during trading on Friday, reaching $165.80. The stock had a trading volume of 2,065,193 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,618,982. Valero Energy Co. has a 52 week low of $104.18 and a 52 week high of $184.79. The business's 50-day moving average price is $161.07 and its 200 day moving average price is $140.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.56 and a quick ratio of 1.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $55.13 billion, a PE ratio of 8.21, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.54.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The oil and gas company reported $3.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.18 by $0.64. Valero Energy had a net margin of 5.01% and a return on equity of 24.95%. The company had revenue of $31.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $32.02 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $8.27 earnings per share. Valero Energy's quarterly revenue was down 12.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Valero Energy Co. will post 18.37 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently weighed in on VLO. Bank of America raised Valero Energy from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $156.00 to $210.00 in a research report on Friday, March 15th. Scotiabank lifted their target price on Valero Energy from $138.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Valero Energy from $177.00 to $178.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, April 1st. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Valero Energy from $167.00 to $197.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. Finally, Mizuho downgraded Valero Energy from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $150.00 to $173.00 in a report on Friday, March 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $173.63.

About Valero Energy

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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