Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) Given New $171.00 Price Target at Mizuho

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) had its price target lowered by Mizuho from $176.00 to $171.00 in a report issued on Thursday morning, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a neutral rating on the oil and gas company’s stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on VLO. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Valero Energy from $184.00 to $179.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, June 6th. Piper Sandler cut their target price on Valero Energy from $187.00 to $169.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, June 14th. StockNews.com upgraded Valero Energy from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report on Saturday, June 15th. Argus lowered Valero Energy from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report on Thursday, May 16th. Finally, Scotiabank upped their target price on Valero Energy from $138.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a sector outperform rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Valero Energy presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $172.00.

Valero Energy Trading Up 1.7 %

Shares of VLO stock opened at $152.46 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $49.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.55, a PEG ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 1.47. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $159.11 and a 200-day moving average of $148.87. The company has a current ratio of 1.59, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. Valero Energy has a 1-year low of $108.28 and a 1-year high of $184.79.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The oil and gas company reported $3.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.18 by $0.64. The company had revenue of $31.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $32.02 billion. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 24.82% and a net margin of 5.01%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $8.27 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Valero Energy will post 17.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 30th will be issued a $1.07 dividend. The ex-dividend date 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 presently 21.20%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Kimberly S. Greene sold 720 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.12, for a total value of $113,846.40. Following the transaction, the director now owns 13,314 shares in the company, valued at $2,105,209.68. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.04% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Valero Energy

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of VLO. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the third quarter valued at approximately $1,649,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Valero Energy by 20.7% during the third quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 273,270 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $38,725,000 after acquiring an additional 46,957 shares during the last quarter. LPL Financial LLC increased its position in shares of Valero Energy by 6.3% during the third quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 398,589 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $56,484,000 after acquiring an additional 23,457 shares during the last quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board increased its position in shares of Valero Energy by 155.2% during the third quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board now owns 4,604 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $652,000 after acquiring an additional 2,800 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund purchased a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the third quarter valued at approximately $6,325,000. 78.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.