Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) Stock Holdings Raised by NBC Securities Inc.

NBC Securities Inc. increased its holdings in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 4.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 3,858 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after buying an additional 179 shares during the period. NBC Securities Inc.’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $658,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Morgan Stanley boosted its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 6.1% in the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 8,961,603 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,269,949,000 after buying an additional 517,068 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Valero Energy during the 4th quarter valued at about $570,428,000. Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in Valero Energy by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,899,875 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $552,651,000 after purchasing an additional 121,057 shares during the period. Putnam Investments LLC boosted its stake in Valero Energy by 3.7% during the 4th quarter. Putnam Investments LLC now owns 3,445,821 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $447,957,000 after purchasing an additional 122,207 shares during the period. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Valero Energy by 14.0% during the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 2,788,994 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $362,569,000 after purchasing an additional 342,218 shares during the period. 78.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VLO has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. TD Cowen reduced their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $190.00 to $185.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 29th. Bank of America raised shares of Valero Energy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $156.00 to $210.00 in a research note on Friday, March 15th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $167.00 to $197.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. Mizuho reduced their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $176.00 to $171.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, June 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $172.00.

Valero Energy Stock Up 1.7 %

VLO stock opened at $152.46 on Friday. Valero Energy Co. has a 52-week low of $108.28 and a 52-week high of $184.79. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $159.11 and its 200-day simple moving average is $148.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.59 and a quick ratio of 1.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $49.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.55, a P/E/G ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 1.47.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last released its quarterly 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 24.82%. The business had revenue of $31.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $32.02 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $8.27 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 12.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Valero Energy Co. will post 17.32 EPS for the current year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 30th will be issued a dividend of $1.07 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 30th. This represents a $4.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.81%. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.20%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Kimberly S. Greene sold 720 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.12, for a total transaction of $113,846.40. Following the sale, the director now owns 13,314 shares in the company, valued at $2,105,209.68. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.04% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.