Tower Research Capital LLC TRC Has $2.55 Million Holdings in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its position in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO - Free Report) by 18.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 20,764 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after acquiring an additional 3,227 shares during the period. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC's holdings in Valero Energy were worth $2,545,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in VLO. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Valero Energy in the fourth quarter worth $669,400,000. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Valero Energy by 16.1% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 34,725,700 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $4,257,024,000 after buying an additional 4,805,133 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Valero Energy in the fourth quarter worth $132,469,000. Prudential Financial Inc. increased its position in Valero Energy by 159.3% in the fourth quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 850,161 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $104,221,000 after buying an additional 522,233 shares during the period. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its position in Valero Energy by 13.6% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 4,072,188 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $499,210,000 after buying an additional 487,022 shares during the period. 78.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Valero Energy Price Performance

VLO stock traded up $0.51 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $113.87. 2,865,096 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,012,471. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $123.10 and a 200 day simple moving average of $129.71. Valero Energy Co. has a one year low of $99.00 and a one year high of $168.85. The company has a market cap of $35.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.43, a P/E/G ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a current ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results 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). The company had revenue of $28.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $28.54 billion. Valero Energy had a net margin of 2.13% and a return on equity of 9.58%. Equities analysts forecast that Valero Energy Co. will post 7.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on VLO shares. Mizuho dropped their target price on Valero Energy from $165.00 to $158.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Piper Sandler dropped their target price on Valero Energy from $149.00 to $144.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Scotiabank decreased their price target on Valero Energy from $156.00 to $136.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Valero Energy from $160.00 to $159.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Valero Energy from $160.00 to $145.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Valero Energy currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $150.36.

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.