Centiva Capital LP Sells 6,992 Shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Centiva Capital LP trimmed its holdings in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO - Free Report) by 54.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,947 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after selling 6,992 shares during the period. Centiva Capital LP's holdings in Valero Energy were worth $729,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. World Investment Advisors raised its position in Valero Energy by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 4,323 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $530,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. Segment Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Valero Energy by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Segment Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,947 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $606,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Silver Coast Investments LLC boosted its position in Valero Energy by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Silver Coast Investments LLC now owns 5,070 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $622,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Patrick M Sweeney & Associates Inc. boosted its position in Valero Energy by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Patrick M Sweeney & Associates Inc. now owns 4,687 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $575,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators boosted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 6.6% during the 4th quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 1,514 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $186,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares in the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on VLO. Raymond James cut their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $165.00 to $155.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Tudor Pickering upgraded shares of Valero Energy from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $160.00 to $150.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of 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, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $152.00 to $147.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 28th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Valero Energy presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $149.53.

Valero Energy Price Performance

NYSE:VLO traded up $1.24 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $122.97. The stock had a trading volume of 2,167,258 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,026,128. Valero Energy Co. has a one year low of $99.00 and a one year high of $167.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.57 and a quick ratio of 1.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $38.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.50, a P/E/G ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $120.15 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $128.42.

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

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 20th will be given a $1.13 dividend. This represents a $4.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.68%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 20th. Valero Energy's payout ratio is presently 159.72%.

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.