Trilogy Capital Inc. Takes Position in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Trilogy Capital Inc. bought a new position in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 17,137 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,925,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. River Street Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Valero Energy by 3.0% in the 1st quarter. River Street Advisors LLC now owns 11,215 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,914,000 after acquiring an additional 325 shares in the last quarter. Vicus Capital lifted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 9.6% in the first quarter. Vicus Capital now owns 3,694 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $631,000 after purchasing an additional 324 shares in the last quarter. MCF Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Valero Energy by 38.3% during the first quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 1,044 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $178,000 after purchasing an additional 289 shares during the last quarter. Occidental Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Valero Energy in the first quarter valued at $202,000. Finally, Independence Bank of Kentucky increased its stake in Valero Energy by 91.9% in the 1st quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky now owns 2,838 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $484,000 after buying an additional 1,359 shares during the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Kimberly S. Greene sold 720 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.47% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on VLO shares. Argus downgraded shares of Valero Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 16th. TD Cowen decreased their price target on Valero Energy from $190.00 to $185.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 29th. Scotiabank boosted their price target on Valero Energy from $138.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Bank of America raised Valero Energy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $156.00 to $210.00 in a report on Friday, March 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $184.00 to $179.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Valero Energy presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $172.00.

Valero Energy Stock Up 1.8 %

VLO stock opened at $156.76 on Monday. 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 business’s fifty day moving average price is $157.35 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $150.47. Valero Energy Co. has a fifty-two week low of $112.16 and a fifty-two week high of $184.79. The stock has a market capitalization of $51.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.76, a PEG ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.42.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 firm had revenue of $31.76 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $32.02 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $8.27 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 12.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Valero Energy Co. will post 16.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 28th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 30th were paid a dividend of $1.07 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 30th. This represents a $4.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.73%. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.20%.

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.