TD Cowen Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) Stock

Key Points

• TD Cowen raised Valero Energy’s price target to $350 from $338 while maintaining a “hold” rating, implying approximately 11.9% upside from the stock’s $312.89 price.
• Valero reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $12.54 beating estimates of $10.11 and revenue of $44.48 billion surpassing expectations; revenue increased 48.8% year over year.
• Analyst sentiment remains broadly positive, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average target price of $287.35, while institutional investors own 78.69% of the company.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO - Get Free Report) had its price objective boosted by equities research analysts at TD Cowen from $338.00 to $350.00 in a research note issued to investors on Monday. The firm presently has a "hold" rating on the oil and gas company's stock. TD Cowen's target price indicates a potential upside of 11.86% from the company's current price.

VLO has been the subject of a number of other reports. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $286.00 to $357.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Valero Energy from $230.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $279.00 to $323.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $259.00 to $302.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Finally, Mizuho lifted their target price on Valero Energy from $222.00 to $289.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $287.35.

Valero Energy Stock Down 0.0%

VLO opened at $312.89 on Monday. Valero Energy has a 12 month low of $130.78 and a 12 month high of $320.24. The business has a 50-day moving average of $270.62 and a two-hundred day moving average of $239.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $92.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.20 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 1.64 and a quick ratio of 1.23.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The oil and gas company reported $12.54 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $10.11 by $2.43. The firm had revenue of $44.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $39.47 billion. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 26.74% and a net margin of 5.17%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 48.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.28 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Valero Energy will post 36.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Valero Energy news, SVP Eric A. Fisher sold 7,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $268.17, for a total transaction of $2,011,275.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 19,742 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,294,212.14. The trade was a 27.53% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.36% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Valero Energy

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in VLO. Woodline Partners LP raised its stake in Valero Energy by 40.7% during the 1st quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 26,747 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $3,532,000 after acquiring an additional 7,735 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 13.0% in the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,929 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $259,000 after purchasing an additional 222 shares in the last quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL acquired a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the second quarter valued at $528,000. Sei Investments Co. increased its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 11.3% during the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 269,043 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $36,165,000 after purchasing an additional 27,291 shares during the period. Finally, Treasurer of the State of North Carolina raised its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 0.9% during the second quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 145,810 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $19,600,000 after purchasing an additional 1,338 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.69% of the company's stock.

Valero Energy Company Profile

Valero Energy Corporation is a San Antonio, Texas–based integrated downstream energy company that manufactures and markets transportation fuels, petrochemical feedstocks and other industrial products. The company's operations focus on refining crude oil into finished fuels such as gasoline, diesel and jet fuel, as well as producing asphalt and other refined product streams for commercial and industrial customers.

In addition to refining, Valero has significant operations in renewable fuels, including the production of ethanol and other biofuels, and it manages an extensive logistics network of pipelines, terminals, rail and marine assets to move feedstocks and finished products.

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